Archuleta County's commissioners are
determined to place sales tax renewal on the Nov. 6 general election
ballot. What they've not agreed on so far is, should they ask for
renewal for seven years only, or for perpetuity?

Currently, a 6.91 percent sales tax is
levied on most retail sales in Archuleta County. Colorado takes 3.91
percent of the total revenue, leaving 4 percent to be divided between
the county and town.

Of the 4 percent retained locally, 1 percent
to be divided equally with the town was first approved in perpetuity
by voters June 25, 1968. An additional 1 percent to be levied in
perpetuity and split with the town was approved by voters Sept. 6,
1983. The final 2 percent currently at issue and an addition to the 2
percent already in effect in perpetuity was first approved by voters
for a 7-year term during November of 1988. Renewal of this 2 percent
levy was approved for a second 7-year period during November of
1994.

The coming Jan. 1, 2003, expiration of 2 of
the 4-cents-per-dollar local sales tax has elevated the sales tax
issue to the top of the commissioners' agenda. Even though the 2
cents is split evenly with the town, the remaining 1 cent stuffs
about $1 million a year into the county budget.

All of the county's income from its 1-cent
portion is spent on road capital improvement projects, a practice the
commissioners hope to continue. In fact, the commissioners hope to
continue the 2 cent sales tax just as it was approved by voters
during November of 1994.

At that time, voters okayed renewal of the 2
cent tax first initiated in 1988. The 1994 ballot question approved
by voters stipulated that the tax would be split evenly with the
town, all county proceeds dedicated to the road capital improvement
fund, and that the tax would expire Jan. 1, 2003.

Expire it will. While seeking renewal, the
commissioners have informally agreed to place the proposition on the
Nov. 6 ballot with one stipulation not agreed upon. Should they seek
a seven-year extension, or should they seek voter approval in
perpetuity?

At the Aug. 14 regular meeting of county
commissioners, Commissioner Bill Downey said he favors a seven-year
renewal, Commissioner and Chairman of the Board Gene Crabtree said he
favors levying the tax in perpetuity, and Commissioner Alden Ecker
was ambivalent.

To help resolve the issue, Kathy Wendt, the
administrative assistant, was instructed to draft language as it may
appear on the Nov. 6 ballot and forward that draft to the Colorado
Department of Revenue. The CDR response will help the commissioners
make a decision.

Complicating the issue was town voter
approval in April of 1999 of an issue concerning an "up to 3 percent"
sales tax. The town's action is independent of anything the county
does. The town tax is scheduled to become effective when the existing
2 percent tax shared by the town and county expires Jan. 1, 2003.
Colorado law limits sales tax levies to a total of 7 percent by all
entities, with a few minor exceptions. If the town's 3 percent goes
into effect and is added to the state's 2.91 percent, no room remains
for a county levy within town limits.

Consequently, if voters approve the county
tax, a confrontation appears to be in the offing between the county
and the town as to which entity's tax will prevail.

The county position is, if it can show voter
approval is a continuation of the existing tax, then it becomes
obvious the existing tax will not expire Jan. 1,2003, and the town's
tax will not automatically kick in. The county position is supported
by Colorado Counties, Inc. attorneys, according to Crabtree. The
county intends to word the ballot question to support the idea that
this will be a continuation and not expiration of the existing
tax.

The town's position, supported by the town's
attorney according to Town Manager Jay Harrington, is that the
existing tax will expire, to be automatically replaced Jan. 1, 2003,
by the town tax.

Town officials say they put the issue before
the voters in order to ensure their sales tax revenue stream is not
interrupted. The town has asked the county for guarantees that any
action by the county not interfere with that revenue stream. The town
is also seeking to avoid any activity by county citizens to change
the distribution of sales tax income. Such an activity occurred when
county citizens tried by initiative to change the current 50-50
county-town split. That attempt failed, but similar attempts could
recur.

In any event, the county and town pledge
fidelity to each other. Each says it enjoys the harmonious working
relationship shared over the past few years. Each promises to share
with the other in the future, regardless of whether voter action Nov.
6 leaves the county or the town in the driver's seat as far as the
sales tax is concerned.

The county promises to make a final decision
on ballot wording either next week or the following week, after
receiving advice from the CDR. The county hopes that advice will give
them confidence their ballot wording will establish the Nov. 6
results as a renewal or extension of the existing tax, if voters say
yes.

Ballot information must be submitted to
County Clerk and Chief Elections Officer June Madrid by Sept. 12,
Madrid said, in order to be placed on the Nov. 6 ballot.

School superintendent
outlines

focus for board of
education

By Richard Walter

Where does our school district stand now and where is it headed?

Those questions were put somewhat into perspective Tuesday night
by Superintendent Duane Noggle as he outlined for the board of
education for Archuleta School District 50 Joint his concept of a
District Focus.

Using a slide presentation which already had been screened by
principals, Noggle said the basis of the concept is a Belief
Statement which includes these precepts:

 All people are of inherent and infinite worth. For example,
Noggle said, "the bus drivers are the Mickey Mouse of our schools. A
smile and a welcome from them make it a place where dreams and
fantasies can be fulfilled. They are the first 'teachers' the
students meet

 All students have the right to receive effective instruction.
"If our teachers are not prepared," Noggle said, "how can they expect
the student to be?"

 Developing self-esteem and self-reliance is a prime
responsibility of our school

 All students have the right to develop their individual
potential and to assume responsibility for their decisions and
actions. "We can't discipline education or mandate learning," Noggle
said

 Education is the responsibility of the school and the student in
cooperation with the home and the community. "Everyone must work
together to make the schools live up to their responsibility," Noggle
said. "That's one reason I came here . . . I saw every evidence that
this is a district that cares about the kids

 Everyone has the right to learn and function in a safe and
appropriate environment, and, finally

 All students can learn.

Noggle told the board he has based his plan on effective team
building - with well-versed and productive personnel in key
leadership positions and referred to a four-stage plan involving
Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing.

"We've accomplished the forming stage with our new principals and
assistants," he said. "The storming phase will come when there are
times that we do not agree. The norming will involve eliminating the
extremes in educational philosophies to find a common track and the
ultimate goal will be performing."

The superintendent said a district support team representing
business, transportation, maintenance and food service divisions will
meet every Thursday and make recommendations to the administration.

Noggle told the board he intends to have regular Superintendent
Chat Sessions. "I'll go to every school," he said, "so all members of
the staff have an opportunity to meet with me and discuss programs
and/or problems," and an accountability committee will meet monthly
to review program progress.

He also said he plans to have regular Superintendent's Forums -
"an open office to the people of the community . . . leaders,
parents, public officials . . . for open exchange of ideas . . . for
public engagement in the school process."

He said school should be fun, safe, exciting, interesting and
well-organized.

To make the system work, he said, some revisions in curriculum are
needed.

For example, he said, we need to take a stronger look at
vocational education. "We should start preparing them much earlier
than high school - perhaps even at upper grade school levels."

Special education, too, needs a hard look and perhaps most
important, is fully realizing and utilizing the rapidly increasing
field of computer-assisted instruction. "The time is coming when the
teacher won't just lecture," he said. "The instructor will have a
full-blown presentation with animation, music and focus of purpose,"
he said.

"Our website home page," he said, "could become an important tool
in education. We're going to make it much more interactive. Parents
will be able to see their students' current grades, students will be
able to log on to get help with a homework question. We will change
the form of interaction so that all can be involved."

Interscholastic activities, he said, will remain a prime focus.
Noting "nearly half the junior high school enrollment is out for fall
sports, we need to strengthen these programs. Sports is a learning
process and we don't want that learning to stop once they've reached
a given performance level. We wand them to be encouraged to be
lifelong learners."

"Our students," he said, "must be allowed to experience both
success and failure. Experimental education should challenge them to
try new things and not be afraid to fail. They can use failure as a
basis for striving higher . . . as a learning tool, not something to
be ashamed of."

He told the board staff development will be based in part on Alfie
Kohn technology and instruction strategy. Technology will be an
education key and site-based decision making will be emphasized
(parameters will be set, organizational structure determined , and
decisions made on that basis).

A lone reference to recent Colorado Scholastic Aptitude
Proficiency (CSAP) test scores, involved his note that "training will
be made available for staff, not by teaching to the test, but by
teaching concept understanding."

He advised the board its goals should be:

To provide a program of safety and health instruction for living in a change world

To offer understanding and appreciation of the creative arts and science in the modern world

To provide, through experiences in democratic living, understanding and appreciation of our form of government, emphasizing obligations of citizenship and social responsibility

To develop understanding of and respect for all people, emphasizing their rights as world citizens and their responsibilities as such

To encourage participation in community living by sharing in leadership and service experiences. (At some point, he said, seniors should be required to have a service requirement for graduation . . . working in a fire station, cleaning ambulances, assisting in traffic control . . . for example)

To provide individual counseling to assist each student in selecting and preparing for a career though a program of higher education, vocational/technical or work immediately after graduation

To maximize parent/community involvement in education

To make most effective use of time in the classroom, increasing percentage of instruction/learning time

To maximize cooperation in the use of district facilities and programs

To maximize communication in the school system so that teachers, students, administrators, parents and the public are fully aware of what is being done to educate children and adults.

"Our ultimate goal," he said, "is to assist every child in
performing to their maximum potential and talents. Their performance
depends upon our performance."

Development director
post to

Bayfield man

By John M.
Motter

Greg Comstock, a Bayfield resident, accepted
employment Tuesday afternoon as Director of County Development for
Archuleta County.

Comstock's hiring is based on a
recommendation from an advisory committee appointed by the county
commissioners which interviewed candidates for the position. At the
Tuesday morning regular meeting of county commissioners, the board
entered executive session to discuss hiring Comstock.

The item was not listed on the meeting
agenda. Colorado law allows executive sessions, even if not listed on
the agenda, if a majority of the governing board involved vote to do
so. Tuesday, the commissioners voted unanimously to enter executive
session to discuss this subject and other subjects noted on the
agenda. After adjourning from the executive session, they instructed
Administrative Assistant Kathy Wendt to make an offer to
Comstock.

Wendt disclosed Tuesday afternoon that
Comstock accepted the county's $45,000 a year offer. Comstock
replaces former County Director of Planning Mike Mollica, who
resigned in March of this year.

Comstock will be in charge of the county
planning department responsible for developing and implementing
regulations connected with county growth and development.

He hopes to report for work Aug. 27, but
could be delayed until Sept. 4 because of prior work
obligations.

Comstock has been employed in the planning
field since 1975 when he accepted a position with the city of Fresno,
Calif. From 1999 through 2000, Comstock was a principal planner with
Durango. From 1995 to 1999, Comstock was city planner for Spanish
Fork, Utah, and from 1992-1995 a planning consultant for High Country
Planning of Heber, Ariz.

The new county director earned a bachelor of
arts degree in economics and geography from California State
University at Fresno in 1973. He added a master's degree in urban and
regional planning at the same university in 1976.

Inside The Sun

Teaching vacancies
filled by

School Board

By Richard Walter

At long last, Archuleta School District 50 Joint has a nearly full
complement of teachers for the beginning of the school year Sept. 4,
and there is one surprise in the mix.

Veteran Intermediate School Principal Butch Madrid, who retired at
the end of the last school year, was named Tuesday night as the new
Dean of Students at Pagosa Springs Elementary School.

Madrid was not at the school board meeting and was out of town
Wednesday and unavailable for comment on his return to the school
system staff.

Also at the elementary school level, the board named Carolyn
Riedberger as a first grade teacher.

At the intermediate school/junior high level, Shawna Bolt was
named to the vacant music teacher position and Pam Miller hired as a
resource teacher aid.

At the junior high school level, Susan Garman was appointed to
fill a mathematics department vacancy, Mike Blum was named an
assistant football coach and Melanie Cowan appointed an assistant
volleyball coach.

In the high school, Jim Shaffer was named an assistant varsity
football coach and Troy Persson an assistant varsity golf coach.

In other personnel action, Errol Hohrein was hired as a half-time
person in maintenance, former transportation director John Rose was
transferred to a mechanic's position (after a one-hour board
executive session to hear the final report on an investigation of
charges against Rose) and Bruce Knudsen was named to the
transportation director post, pending his approval of the contract.

After the meeting, Superintendent Duane Noggle said the staff is
now 99.9 percent complete, with only one vacancy possibly remaining
under the Title 1 Program.

Non-resident owners
protest FUSA fees to PLPOA board

By Richard Walter

It is an issue that won't go away.

Despite at least two prior lawsuits which
went against the complainants, the question of recreation fees levied
by Fairfield USA against some properties in the Pagosa Lakes
communities has risen again.

And this time, a protagonist against the
fees is hoping to garner enough support among others being assessed,
to bring a class action suit to suspend efforts to collect.

Robert G. Schmideler of Longmont told Pagosa
Lakes Property Owners Association directors Thursday that he has
owned property in Lakeview Estates, off Lighthouse Drive, since
1990.

"I am a victim of Fairfield Association," he
said. "A victim of recreation fees being billed since 1991."

At time of purchase, he said, "no one, not
Fairfield representatives, the title company or anyone else ever
mentioned the recreation fee. It was my belief our only obligation
was to pay taxes and association dues. No one mentioned the $15
monthly recreation fee nor the $14 monthly fee for having a water
line past the property." (Editors note: Fairfield's FUSA fee does not
include a water availability fee. It is assessed by the Pagosa Area
Water and Sanitation District.)

He told the board he initially paid the fee,
even though he was unaware of the codicil in his deed outlining it.
"That was my fault," he said, "for not reading the fine print
closely. But finally, I decided, the property is vacant, I don't
occupy it and there is no structure on it. There is no reason I
should have to pay a monthly fee for nothing in return."

When Fairfield went into bankruptcy, he
said, "we were told PLPOA will take over operation of recreation
facilities and I withheld payment thereafter, assuming my PLPOA dues
were inclusive of such fees."

Then, he said, "I started receiving letters
from Fairfield threatening suit. At present, I am over $3,000 in
arrears on a fee that has no purpose. Every contract should be
bilateral. If a fee is required, something should be provided for
that fee. In this case there is no service."

Schmideler told the board he decided to sell
the property and, after an engineering feasibility study, was told it
would cost $25,000 to $30,000 to bring it up to grade. A neighbor,
hoping to stop construction on the lot and protect her view, he said,
made him an offer of $11,000 (roughly 60 percent of what he paid for
the property). "I drew up a temporary purchase-sale agreement and
went to a local title company proposing consolidation of the two
lots. I had the deed with me. I was told no title firm could issue a
title policy or handle the case in any way until the amount in
arrears is paid.

"There are approximately 1,900 of your PLPOA
members who are victims of the Fairfield covenant," he said, and "we
believe it is incumbent upon you to make a move to get this fee set
aside."

He asked directors to support a move to form
a local legal defense fund to help victimized property owners fight
the fee assessment through a class action suit, saying he intends to
advertise for any such property owners who want to be party to the
suit.

PLPOA board president Richard Manley told
Schmideler the same type of suggestion was broached during the annual
meeting last month and that then, as now, the board has no
jurisdiction in such actions.

There is some agreement, he said, that
proportionately few of those being assessed the fee get any service
for it. "The recreation center is now ours, and the golf course is a
private enterprise. Some Fairfield members get reduced rates there,
but those mostly are timeshare and condo users."

"It is a general feeling of this board," he
said, "that something needs to be done. We have determined areas
where we can negotiate with Fairfield and we are working on putting
the question of FUSA fees into that negotiation equation. Any
question of litigation would be well down the road. We'd much prefer
to settle amicably on a negotiated answer.

"That doesn't mean that you, as a property
owner, can't enlist others in the same situation to join in your
quest," he continued. "I'd be willing to bet the left half of my
house, however, that if litigation is enacted, all negotiations on
our part would be down the tubes."

Director David Bohl said, "People paying the
fee have a very legitimate complaint and have a right to take legal
action. But, this board has to be neutral. The property owners should
have been advised of the fees, should have read it for themselves,
but still have the right to seek relief."

Director Thomas Cruse asked to be put on
record "that I'm opposed to this board becoming involved, as a board,
in this issue."

From another section of the audience,
Schmideler's quest was taken up by Edie Cook who told the board she
is a California resident but owns two lots on Beaver Circle in Lake
Forest Estates and leases out a home on the property.

"I, too, was never notified by Fairfield or
anyone connected with it - or by the title company - at the time of
purchase that such a fee existed. I got a letter from Fairfield in
1994 saying I owed $600 in back fees . . . an amount that is now up
to several thousand dollars.

"Those of us being assessed this fee
represent about 20 percent of PLPOA membership," she said, "and we
feel you should be acting on our behalf to put a stop to this.

"As you can tell, I'm really distressed by
this. I was told there would be an attorney here tonight with answers
for us but I don't see one. I, too, want to sell, but cannot do so
with the unpaid fees - for which I've received no benefit - hanging
over me.

"Since I, and most of the others pay our
PLPOA dues regularly," she said, "I should think you'd be obligated
to represent us in our predicament."

Bohl reiterated, "This was all the result of
a court decision. The courts upheld the fee. I was warned when I
first came to town that the courts had ruled against the property
owners. It was a matter of public record. PLPOA is not and should not
be a party to the fee dispute except in negotiation. It was a
contractual obligation."

Director Gerald Smith said "it is not
PLPOA's place to represent you in this issue. You signed the
documents."

Still, Cook was adamant. "There's something
wrong if you negotiate with them without taking up our interest," she
said.

When Schmideler asked the board if members
were aware "some of the court decisions have been set aside here in
Archuleta County?" general manager Walt Lukasik said, "One such case
has been appealed by Fairfield."

Manley told the fee payers, "We appreciate
what you have said. I don't know how we can express ourselves on
title agencies or realtors who did not do their job. Buyer diligence
is required. It has gone to court several times and the FUSA fees
have been upheld.

"It is out of our hands," he said. "We
choose not to get into litigation. It may be that through our
negotiations on other matters we can achieve a trade-off on FUSA
fees, but that is not a promise. It is something we are working on.
And, we're aware it is an issue which won't go away."

Schmideler thanked the board for its time
and "the great job you've been doing. I will push this issue
independently and hope to garner support of other fee payers.

PLPOA orders property
appearance guidelines

By Richard Walter

It is an issue that won't go away.

Despite at least two prior lawsuits which
went against the complainants, the question of recreation fees levied
by Fairfield USA against some properties in the Pagosa Lakes
communities has risen again.

And this time, a protagonist against the
fees is hoping to garner enough support among others being assessed,
to bring a class action suit to suspend efforts to collect.

Robert G. Schmideler of Longmont told Pagosa
Lakes Property Owners Association directors Thursday that he has
owned property in Lakeview Estates, off Lighthouse Drive, since
1990.

"I am a victim of Fairfield Association," he
said. "A victim of recreation fees being billed since 1991."

At time of purchase, he said, "no one, not
Fairfield representatives, the title company or anyone else ever
mentioned the recreation fee. It was my belief our only obligation
was to pay taxes and association dues. No one mentioned the $15
monthly recreation fee nor the $14 monthly fee for having a water
line past the property." (Editors note: Fairfield's FUSA fee does not
include a water availability fee. It is assessed by the Pagosa Area
Water and Sanitation District.)

He told the board he initially paid the fee,
even though he was unaware of the codicil in his deed outlining it.
"That was my fault," he said, "for not reading the fine print
closely. But finally, I decided, the property is vacant, I don't
occupy it and there is no structure on it. There is no reason I
should have to pay a monthly fee for nothing in return."

When Fairfield went into bankruptcy, he
said, "we were told PLPOA will take over operation of recreation
facilities and I withheld payment thereafter, assuming my PLPOA dues
were inclusive of such fees."

Then, he said, "I started receiving letters
from Fairfield threatening suit. At present, I am over $3,000 in
arrears on a fee that has no purpose. Every contract should be
bilateral. If a fee is required, something should be provided for
that fee. In this case there is no service."

Schmideler told the board he decided to sell
the property and, after an engineering feasibility study, was told it
would cost $25,000 to $30,000 to bring it up to grade. A neighbor,
hoping to stop construction on the lot and protect her view, he said,
made him an offer of $11,000 (roughly 60 percent of what he paid for
the property). "I drew up a temporary purchase-sale agreement and
went to a local title company proposing consolidation of the two
lots. I had the deed with me. I was told no title firm could issue a
title policy or handle the case in any way until the amount in
arrears is paid.

"There are approximately 1,900 of your PLPOA
members who are victims of the Fairfield covenant," he said, and "we
believe it is incumbent upon you to make a move to get this fee set
aside."

He asked directors to support a move to form
a local legal defense fund to help victimized property owners fight
the fee assessment through a class action suit, saying he intends to
advertise for any such property owners who want to be party to the
suit.

PLPOA board president Richard Manley told
Schmideler the same type of suggestion was broached during the annual
meeting last month and that then, as now, the board has no
jurisdiction in such actions.

There is some agreement, he said, that
proportionately few of those being assessed the fee get any service
for it. "The recreation center is now ours, and the golf course is a
private enterprise. Some Fairfield members get reduced rates there,
but those mostly are timeshare and condo users."

"It is a general feeling of this board," he
said, "that something needs to be done. We have determined areas
where we can negotiate with Fairfield and we are working on putting
the question of FUSA fees into that negotiation equation. Any
question of litigation would be well down the road. We'd much prefer
to settle amicably on a negotiated answer.

"That doesn't mean that you, as a property
owner, can't enlist others in the same situation to join in your
quest," he continued. "I'd be willing to bet the left half of my
house, however, that if litigation is enacted, all negotiations on
our part would be down the tubes."

Director David Bohl said, "People paying the
fee have a very legitimate complaint and have a right to take legal
action. But, this board has to be neutral. The property owners should
have been advised of the fees, should have read it for themselves,
but still have the right to seek relief."

Director Thomas Cruse asked to be put on
record "that I'm opposed to this board becoming involved, as a board,
in this issue."

From another section of the audience,
Schmideler's quest was taken up by Edie Cook who told the board she
is a California resident but owns two lots on Beaver Circle in Lake
Forest Estates and leases out a home on the property.

"I, too, was never notified by Fairfield or
anyone connected with it - or by the title company - at the time of
purchase that such a fee existed. I got a letter from Fairfield in
1994 saying I owed $600 in back fees . . . an amount that is now up
to several thousand dollars.

"Those of us being assessed this fee
represent about 20 percent of PLPOA membership," she said, "and we
feel you should be acting on our behalf to put a stop to this.

"As you can tell, I'm really distressed by
this. I was told there would be an attorney here tonight with answers
for us but I don't see one. I, too, want to sell, but cannot do so
with the unpaid fees - for which I've received no benefit - hanging
over me.

"Since I, and most of the others pay our
PLPOA dues regularly," she said, "I should think you'd be obligated
to represent us in our predicament."

Bohl reiterated, "This was all the result of
a court decision. The courts upheld the fee. I was warned when I
first came to town that the courts had ruled against the property
owners. It was a matter of public record. PLPOA is not and should not
be a party to the fee dispute except in negotiation. It was a
contractual obligation."

Director Gerald Smith said "it is not
PLPOA's place to represent you in this issue. You signed the
documents."

Still, Cook was adamant. "There's something
wrong if you negotiate with them without taking up our interest," she
said.

When Schmideler asked the board if members
were aware "some of the court decisions have been set aside here in
Archuleta County?" general manager Walt Lukasik said, "One such case
has been appealed by Fairfield."

Manley told the fee payers, "We appreciate
what you have said. I don't know how we can express ourselves on
title agencies or realtors who did not do their job. Buyer diligence
is required. It has gone to court several times and the FUSA fees
have been upheld.

"It is out of our hands," he said. "We
choose not to get into litigation. It may be that through our
negotiations on other matters we can achieve a trade-off on FUSA
fees, but that is not a promise. It is something we are working on.
And, we're aware it is an issue which won't go away."

Schmideler thanked the board for its time
and "the great job you've been doing. I will push this issue
independently and hope to garner support of other fee payers.

Forest Service invites
comment on proposed land swap

Public comments are now being accepted on an
environmental assessment of a land exchange whereby the U.S. Forest
Service would acquire 160 acres of private land within the boundaries
of the San Juan National Forest in Dolores County.

In exchange, Robert D. Lindner Ranches would
acquire 104 acres of National Forest adjoining its private property
in Hinsdale and Mineral counties, northwest of Pagosa Springs.

Paul Beaber, San Juan National Forest land
surveyor and realty specialist, said Forest Service acquisition of
the private inholding two miles northeast of Rico is in the public
interest.

"It will protect the Town of Rico's
watershed in the Silver Creek drainage, secure legal public access to
the Circle Trail and Forest Development Road 551, and enhance
recreational opportunities," Beaber said.

Under the proposed exchange, Lindner Ranches
would consolidate land ownership by acquiring public land
intermingled with private lands near the East Fork of the Piedra
River. The ranch is adjacent to the Pagosa Ranger District of the San
Juan National Forest.

"Private acquisition of these federal lands
would allow Lindner Ranches to undertake important river restoration
activities," said Adam Poe of Western Land Group.

Public comments will be accepted until Sept.
6. Written comments may be mailed to Paul Beaber, San Juan National
Forest, 15 Burnett Court, Durango, CO 81301 or e-mailed to:
pbeaber@fs.fed.us.

For more information, contact Beaber at
385-1205.

Nov. 6 election will be
conducted exclusively by mail

By John M Motter

Archuleta County voters are restricted to
casting ballots by mail for the Nov. 6, 2001, general
election.

Colorado law allows mail ballot elections
during odd years, according to June Madrid, the Archuleta County
Clerk and chief elections official. The county commissioners approved
a resolution May 1 specifying that this year's election be by mail
ballot. Consequently, all elections in the county this year must be
by mail ballot, Madrid said.

Local taxing entities, excepting the school
district, may conduct elections apart from the county, according to
Madrid, but they still must be mail ballot elections. The school
district and the state must conduct their elections through the
county election office. Other entities may choose to let the county
conduct elections for them.

At this early stage, it appears the county,
school district, hospital district, and the state will have issues on
the Nov. 6 ballot, according to Madrid. School board candidates will
also be on the ballot. The hospital district has chosen the county to
conduct its election.

Madrid is currently looking at three or four
ballot styles. Special districts must certify ballot information to
Madrid by Sept. 12.

Madrid will then order ballots printed.
Ballots will be mailed to voters no earlier than Oct. 12 and no later
than Oct. 22. No early voting is possible under the mail-out process.
Voters may return ballots directly by dropping them in a ballot box
located in the county clerk's office.

In order to receive a ballot, voters who
move or change address must give Madrid a correct mailing address by
Oct. 5.

Only active voters receive a ballot to vote
Nov. 6. Those who voted in the 2000 general election are considered
active voters. Even so, if they have changed addresses since the 2000
general election, they must provide Madrid with a current
address.

Persons who did not vote in the 2000 general
election are not considered active voters. Consequently, they must
visit the county clerk's office in the county courthouse and update
their record. The last date to register or update a record and be
eligible to vote is Oct. 5.

Registration can be accomplished in person
by visiting the county clerk's office in the courthouse, or by mail
if using the correct form. The correct form must be obtained from the
clerk's office.

During the 2000 general election, 4,814
votes were cast in Archuleta County.

Postal Service agents
probing cluster box vandalism

By Tess Noel Baker

A local cluster mailbox was the victim of
vandals last week.

According to Archuleta County Sheriff's
Department reports, the cluster box at the corner of Meadows Drive
and Buttress was pried open from the back. The incident was reported
Aug. 7.

Sheriff Captain Bob Grandchamp said the case
is under investigation.

Pagosa Springs Postmaster Richard Love said
at this time no mail has been reported missing and the Postal
Inspection Service has been notified.

Postal Inspector Randy Stokes, of Colorado
Springs, said it may take some time to uncover whether or not fraud
is involved.

Letters will be sent to all the people with
boxes in the cluster from the inspection offices in Denver, he said.
Generally that occurs about two weeks after the break-in because
people don't usually notice missing credit cards or checks until
after they receive a bank statement, he said.

"From here we just follow the paper trail,"
he said. "We wait to see if anything is cashed. Sometimes there will
be no fraud if nothing of value was found in the box."

Although incidents like this are rare in
Archuleta County, Lowe said, the back of the mailbox that was hit has
been changed to provide more security.

However, around the state, the number of
cluster mailbox thefts is on the rise. So far this year, over 400
cases have been reported.

To help prevent mail theft, Love gave these
tips:

 Pick up delivered mail from mailboxes as
soon as possible

 Do not leave outgoing letters in
neighborhood cluster box units

 If possible, take outgoing mail directly
to the post office or to a blue collection box prior to last pick-up
of the day

 Report suspicious activity or mail theft
immediately to a local law enforcement agency and to the Colorado
Postal Inspectors' 24-hour line at (303) 313-5320

 Have the post office hold mail if planning
to be gone for long periods of time.

Theft of mail is a felony. Conviction can
result in a fine of up to $250,000 and up to five years
imprisonment.

August rainfall
mounting fast but record seems safe

By John M. Motter

August rainfall in Pagosa Country totaled
3.13 inches by 7 a.m. yesterday, below the maximum ever recorded for
August of 5.36 inches, but well above the August average of 2.52
inches.

This past week 1.27 inches of precipitation
were measured at Stevens Field from Aug. 8 through Aug. 14. Almost
one-half an inch, 0.46 inches, fell Sunday night and Monday morning.
Stevens field is the official local National Weather Service gauging
station.

On the average, more precipitation falls
during August in Pagosa Country than any other month of the year. The
August average of 2.52 inches enjoys a substantial lead over the next
highest average, in October, with its 2.03 inches. October leads all
months for maximum precipitation with 7.8 inches, followed by January
with 7.79 inches.

Temperatures last week were on the cool
side. Highs averaged 77 degrees, lows 53 degrees. The highest
temperature, 78 degrees, was measured three times. The local
thermometer has not reached 90 degrees this season. Last week's
lowest temperature was 51 degrees.

Local weather should dry out over the coming
weekend, then return to the wetter monsoon pattern early next week,
according to Gary Chancy, a forecaster from the National Weather
Service office in Grand Junction.

"Skies will be partly cloudy with a 20
percent chance for afternoon and evening showers and thunderstorms
through Thursday evening," Chancy said. "The chances for rain are
slight over the weekend."

A high pressure area over Eastern New Mexico
fostering the monsoon conditions which have dominated local weather
recently will move out over the weekend, according to Chancy. Over
the weekend, monsoon conditions will be replaced by a high pressure
area west of Colorado creating northerly wind flows with drier air
content.

By Monday afternoon monsoon conditions
created by the high pressure area over Eastern New Mexico should
return, Chancy said.

Light Plant Road bids
under estimate

By John M. Motter

Three bids were opened Friday for rebuilding
Light Plant Road from the Pagosa Springs town limit south and
eastward to Light Plant Road's intersection with U.S. 84.

The project has been divided by Davis
Engineering, the county's contract engineer, into two phases. Phase 1
extends from the town limits southeastward to the Mill Creek bridge.
Phase 2 extends from the bridge to U.S. 84. Work on Phase 1 begins
this fall. Completion is expected some time next spring.

Low bidder on the project was SLV
Earthmovers, Inc. of Monte Vista. SLV Earthmovers bid $445,409 on
Phase 1, $512,481 on Phase 2. Also attempting to get the contract
were Strohecker Excavation, Inc. of Bayfield, and Weeminuche
Construction Authority of Towaoc. Strohecker bid $505,905 on Phase 1
and $622,476 on Phase 2. Weeminuche bid $593,969 on Phase 1 and
$654,477 on Phase 2.

Bids will be reviewed by Davis Engineering,
contract engineers for the county. The county commissioners will not
select a bid until they've reviewed Davis' recommendations. Following
acceptance of a bid, the county and successful bidder will negotiate
a contract.

When the project is complete, conversion of
the road from gravel to asphalt pavement will facilitate entry into
town from the southeast. Access to the high school complex by way of
the Aztec Street bridge across the San Juan River will also be
improved.

Archuleta County and Pagosa Springs share
responsibility and funding for the projects. Much of the money comes
from a 2 percent countywide sales tax divided equally between the
county and the town. The county's portion is allocated to a road and
bridge capital improvements fund, the town's portion goes to a
capital improvement's fund.

In other business, the commissioners:

 Following a public hearing, adopted
changes to the limited impact section of county land use
regulations

 Approved a beer and liquor license renewal
for the Bavarian Inn

 Approved an agreement with the state,
shifting responsibility for Beanpole funding in Southwest Colorado
from Archuleta County to La Plata County. A separate, but related,
contract stipulating conditions of agreement among the involved
counties was also approved. The involved counties are Archuleta, La
Plata, San Juan, Montezuma, and Dolores. Also included are the
Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute reservations

 County Emergency Management Coordinator
Russell Crowley was granted $7,739.51 with which to upgrade county
road maps by hiring a contractor with a ground position
locater

 Approved $6,000 for use by the county
finance department for purchasing additional computer memory

 Listened to a monthly progress report
presented by Social Services director Erlinda Gonzalez. Gonzalez was
authorized to spend $6,304 for installation of wireless
computer/telephone equipment. Installation of the equipment will
allow County Social Services to move from the courthouse to
contracted facilities in the new Town Hall building.

Gonzalez reported a district court judge has
ordered Archuleta County Social Services to provide services for two
delinquent minors. The estimated cost of the services is $3,000 a
month for one and an estimated $13,500 a month for the other. A
meeting between county officials and the involved judge is being
arranged in an attempt to work out a solution which won't break
Archuleta County's budget.

Haitian students go
'Old West' in Pagosa Visit

Trip winners: Landscapes
leave youngsters in awe

By Tess Noel Baker

"It's like going to heaven for them."

That's how Hugues Bastien, director of
Institution Univers, a private Christian school in rural Haiti,
describes the experience four of his students will have over the next
few weeks as they explore three American destinations.

These students, age 8-10, who started their
vacation in Pagosa Springs this last week, earned a trip to the
United States by achieving top scores on their annual academic
tests.

Bastien said the competition is a major
incentive for families in Ouanaminthe who make a sacrifice just to
send a child to school at a cost of $45 a year. Because of economic
conditions in the rural town of 84,000, including a 90-percent
unemployment rate, many students' parents are uneducated, struggle to
provide the basic necessities and have little chance to help their
students academically.

"There's no way they would ever dream of
coming to the states," he said. The competition at Institution
Univers provides the push many of them need to encourage their
children to excel. After the first of these trips two years ago, the
excitement only grew and test results showed marked improvement for
many, Bastien said.

Another hope, he said, is that the visit to
the United States will open the children's eyes to the possibilities
of prosperity and encourage them to bring these ideas back to their
own country.

Nearly everything on the trip has been new
to them. The journey to secure their visas, a distance of less than
200 miles that takes 12 hours over the country's bad roads, was the
first time they had seen Port au Prince, Haiti's capital. Taking an
airplane was another story.

"The plane is almost like a house," Rose
Saica, age 8, said, wide-eyed even describing the experience.

"Once in Albuquerque, they asked, 'Where are
all the people?' because they are used to seeing everyone walking,"
Bastien said. They also had fun learning to ride an escalator, an
experience that resulted in a few falls and a lot of laughs.

During their stay in Pagosa, from Aug. 8-15,
the new experiences continued to pile up. The children attended a
rodeo, saw an old west show, met a United States senator, took a
train ride, rode horses, viewed water falls and went to the top of
Wolf Creek Pass. Of course, things like Pizza Hut, Alco, washing
machines and television were all new as well.

Food firsts are accruing quickly with both
good and bad results.

When asked to name their favorites, the
children quickly switched from their native French to English.

"Chicken," Rosa Saica said. "Ice
cream."

"They are eager to try new things," Char
Neill, one of the children's hosts, said. "They tried the lemonade,
and it was awful. But they trusted us enough to try it a second
time."

"Even the beauty of the country is
overwhelming to them," Bastien said.

Alan Raphael, age 11, was impressed by the
water running out of the mountains at Treasure Falls. Both Rose Saica
and Rose Judith, 8, said the trees and flowers were their favorite
parts of the landscape here.

"All the country is mountainous at home,"
Bastien said, "but bare. Here you see the beauty with the water
coming out of the mountains and the trees."

Shopping has been a big hit. In fact, the
United Methodist Thrift Shop was one of the first stops.

"Things here are very precious to them,"
Bastien said. "They bought clothes for themselves, their siblings."
Other purchases included watches, purses, sunglasses, backpacks and
other school supplies.

People in Ouanaminthe have no electricity
and must walk or ride horses. Homes are made of concrete blocks,
plywood, or sticks and mud. Many of the students come to school
without having had breakfast. They bring nothing for lunch, and may
go home to no dinner, he said. Medical conditions are also poor with
one doctor and two nurses attempting to serve everyone. The life
expectancy holds at about 53 years of age.

Bastien, who returned to Haiti to start the
school after spending 15 years in the United States, said equipping
the children of Haiti with a knowledge of God and a solid education
was the best way to help them gain the tools to improve conditions in
their own country.

The school began in 1994 as a kindergarten
"L'Univers Des Petits, Kindergarten" with 84 children and three
teachers. Each year since then, Bastien and his staff have attempted
to add an additional classroom so that the children who started at
the school will graduate from high school and, hopefully, go on to
higher education. Currently the Institution Univers serves 640
children (300 girls, 340 boys) ranging in age from 2 1/2 to 11 years.
The staff includes 18 teachers, two assistants, one supervisor, one
secretary, three custodians, one driver and five administrative
directors. Teachers are paid $960 per year.

The students to teacher ratio was key to
Bastien's vision for the school. Other private schools in the region,
are too expensive for local families, follow no standard of education
and are crowded, having as many as 105 children per classroom per
instructor. Failure in government exams at the end of high school is
high.

At the Institution Univers, courses are
offered in Bible studies, writing, reading, languages (French and
English), math, social studies, music and arts, sports, geography of
Haiti and history of Haiti.

A student's day begins at 7:20 a.m. Monday
through Friday with an assembly around the flag. Bible study is first
and lasts about 30 minutes. Then students are released to their
classrooms for the regular academic program which lasts until 1:30
p.m. From 3-5 p.m., an after-school program is offered. On Saturdays
from 9 a.m. to noon, students return for a sports program, videos,
Bible study and arts and crafts. On Friday afternoons, music is added
and students learn songs and study English.

The school year starts Sept. 1 and runs
through June. In July, the school offers a summer camp, leaving just
one month for vacation.

All four of the academic achievement
winners, two from 2000 who weren't able to get visas last year, and
two from 2001, said math was their favorite subject. When asked why,
Alan said "solving problems," and Ruth Saica added "division."

The four students began their United States
experience in Pagosa Springs because of John and Char Neill, members
of the United Methodist Church, who met Bastien while touring Israel
in March of 2000.

"We have great respect for what he and his
staff are trying to accomplish in what can only be described as
deplorable conditions in all areas of employment, government, medical
and transportation. Yet their faith that their dream will be realized
is so strong we can't help but be affected and desirous to help in
any way we can," the Neills said.

Having the children around for just a few
days taught them both a lot.

"Simplicity," John Neill said. "We don't
need all this stuff to be happy people."

"Joyfulness," Char Neill added.

As for the children, the three girls
admitted to missing siblings and family. Alan's response to whether
or not he was missing home was an immediate, "No."

When asked what they'd like to take back to
Haiti with them, Alan said, "a car, $1,000 dollars."

Rosa Saica and Katiana Agrand, said,
"motorcycles."

Rose Judith said, "a television."

"But then she would need power for the
T.V.," Bastien said, smiling at their enthusiasm.

In the next year, the school staff will be
working to secure the funding to complete a new multi-purpose room on
the campus. When finished, the space will be used for an auditorium,
gymnasium and cafeteria.

"Next we're trying to start a feeding
program for the students," he said. Other projected 2001 needs
include playground equipment, a basketball/volleyball court,
finishing supplies for the sixth grade classroom and a large school
bus.

Members of the United Methodist Church in
Pagosa Springs have pledged to build a pair of new classrooms for the
school at a cost of around $7,000. The local Christian Men's Group
has agreed to sponsor a teacher for one year.

From here, the students traveled to
Cleveland, Ohio and then on to New York City before heading
home.

"We return on Friday and on Monday they must
be back in class," he said. "Vacation over."

Waterfowl bag limits
left intact for new season

The Colorado Wildlife Commission approved
waterfowl regulations for the 2001-2002 season Aug. 9 including bag
and possession limits similar to those of last year.

The commission also approved a walk-in
access hunting program that will open up small game and waterfowl
hunting on private land in northeastern Colorado for hunters who
purchase a $20 permit.

Waterfowl hunters will be able to hunt ducks
in the Central Flyway from Sept. 29 through Nov. 21, Nov. 3 through
Nov. 29 and Dec. 7 through Jan. 20, 2002. In the Pacific Flyway, duck
seasons will run from Sept. 29 through Oct. 14 and Oct. 24 through
Jan. 20, 2002.

Canvasback ducks may only be harvested
during the first segment of each season to assure that populations do
not fall below Continent-wide objectives.

The general goose season in the Central
Flyway will run from Nov. 17 through Feb. 17, 2002 for both dark and
light geese. In the Pacific Flyway, the season will run from Sept. 29
through Oct. 9 and Oct. 24 through Jan. 20, 2002.

The bag limit in the Central Flyway is five
dark and 20 light geese. In the Pacific Flyway, the bag limit is two
geese in aggregate.

Numerous special seasons were also approved
and will be available in the Division of Wildlifes 2001 Waterfowl
Brochure.

The walk-in access program will begin with
the start of the pheasant season in November and end on the last day
of February. In future years, the access program will begin on Sept.
1.

The division is working with community
groups and private landowners in northeastern Colorado who will
participate in the program. The program, modeled after successful
programs in other states, will open private land previously closed to
many hunters.

The $20 fee will pay for the costs of the
program including signs and publications listing the
properties.

The commission also approved an emergency
regulation reducing the sage grouse season from 16 to 7 days in North
Park and Middle Park. The season will now run from Sept. 8 through
Sept. 14.

Division staff members requested the change
at the request of local groups working with the Division to conserve
and protect sage grouse and their habitat.

This message can be found online at
http://www.dnr.state.co.us/cdnr_news/wildlife/200181383032.html

Letters

Brilliant idea

Dear Editor

I have been following the SUN for
the past six years since purchasing a residence in this beautiful
town. Having been involved in some of the local county and city
government issues in other locations in the past, it is with interest
that I notice each location has its own self-appointed monitor of how
their taxes are being spent and who is benefiting the most. I have
read most of Mr. Sawicki's letters to the paper on a wide variety of
issues and he certainly keeps up with what's going on around
town.

His latest letter he wrote about
the cost of repairing the taxiways at the airport was most
interesting. Normally I don't agree with a lot of what he says but I
think he might have a brilliant idea about making the users pay for
the airport. In fact, it is so good that I want him to push for not
only the airport being privately run but all of the other public
facilities also. We should start with the roads and streets. I have
never used all the streets that exist in town. Just think if we could
make each street a toll-road, privately ran and operated. Of course
the toll charge would be higher for the roads that lead to those big
homes that have those beautiful views. It would save me a bundle of
tax money as I am sure it would others. I have never used the fire
department or emergency medical facilities either. These should also
be private and just charge us when we actually use them . . . and
what about the police department. Only the 'bad guys' should pay for
their services. That is primarily why they are here. Oh and the most
costly to me for taxes is the public schools. I have no children in
the school system in Pagosa. Let's make it a private school and just
those that have children would be required to support it. I suppose
we could adjust the cost for the school based on how much each
child's car cost that they drive to school. Go get 'em Jim, I think I
see a way to save myself a bundle of money. Next time I am walking
from the airport to my residence I can laugh at all those silly folk
that are paying toll to drive their cars around.

Ken Berg

Believable reasons

Dear Editor,

Let me preface this letter by
saying that I know Alden Ecker, I like him and I voted for him. I
also think that all in all he has done a pretty good job as a
commissioner. Unfortunately, in the past few weeks he's made a couple
of blunders that I think need to be addressed.

First, the idea that the taxiway
at the airport can be fixed for $250,000 is absurd! To think that you
can take out six inches of clay, and fill it with gravel and thereby
create an adequate base is ludicrous. I see this as a bottomless
money pit over the next few years.

Second, the decision to spend
$11,000 to build a guardrail along Piedra Road on the pretense that a
fence wouldn't stop people from entering the road illegally would be
laughable if it weren't so expensive. I've been out of town quite a
bit during the past month, but I don't recall hearing of a rash of
incidents involving people driving through fences to keep from having
to drive 50 feet to get to a driveway. Come on, you have to come up
with something better than that.

It seems our commissioners need to
be reminded who actually pays the taxes in this county. They did not
hesitate to give $200,000 to the airport - a constant drain on county
coffers, serving less than 1 percent of the county population. But,
when a group of taxpayers approached the county for sponsorship and
less than 1/10th that amount of money, they are told they just do not
know how "modern government" operates.

It is evident, from their
performance that the commissioners do not have the vaguest notion of
how government operates. Then again, what can we expect from a
commissioner who illegally cuts the lock and dumps questionable waste
in the county landfill and another who illegally closes the
maintained portion of a roadway that has been in use in Archuleta
County for close to 100 years then dares the county to take him to
court over the matter. It is evident the agenda of at least two
commissioners is either self-serving or serves the interest of the
wealthy at the expense of the taxpayers. Why is it a commissioner who
could find funds for unbudgeted road work, couldn't find funds to do
something constructive for a change?

Proponents requesting sponsorship
and funds should have asked for an airport, cut the locks on the
landfill and closed Turkey Springs Road - then all three
commissioners would be in their corner.

Mr. Crabtree again stuck his foot
in his mouth by stating that a commissioners' meeting was not an open
forum or the place to discuss a park. If proponents of the park were
scheduled to be on the agenda then any discussion regarding the park
was in order until the matter was voted on or tabled by the board. I
did not see where either happened.

For the commissioners'
information, they can form a Park District without it being on a
ballot. A change in the service plan of the Aspen Springs Metro
District, however, would require that the district petition the
county, which would then be required to hold a public hearing on the
matter and, if approved, refer it to the 6th Judicial District. The
court would schedule and hold a hearing to determine the validity of
the request and could decide to place the question on the ballot for
approval by the Aspen Springs electorate. Now, let one of the
commissioners say which method is most feasible.

Mr. Crabtree's suggestion that the
county attempt to imitate the "City" could be construed to say that
perhaps we should have the Town Board and town planners replace the
sitting county government. Leadership is the key, the Town of Pagosa
Springs has it, the County of Archuleta does not.

It is not that the people do not
understand modern government, it is that the sitting "Modern
Government" does not understand its people, or itself for that
matter.

Thanks,

Leroy Oldham

Two concerns

Dear Editor,

Two of the concerns before our
county commissioners affect us all. I would encourage others to
express their opinions on these issues.

1) The Community Plan needs to be
implemented in full, with no further delays. Every day we do nothing
causes the loss of the uniqueness and beauty of our community, and
the reduction of our value to tourists, on whom our economy
depends.

2) Controls on sound emissions
should be for both day and night, 24 hours. A dog that frequently
barks for hours, or a neighbor that most of the day plays very loud
music whose sound goes beyond their property, ruins the peace we
need. The occasional loud celebration should be allowed, or a small
construction project by a handyman, or the occasional weed whacker
use (my least favorite irritant), but not what I would call chronic
noise.

A time-limited construction
project should of course be allowed. There must be a common sense way
to write such a law.

Thank you for your
consideration.

Sharon Porter

New technologies

Dear Editor,

Because of the price of fuel and
its volatility in price, we need to start to develop new technologies
that do not use natural gas or oil.

We use such energy sources in
agriculture, home heating and transportation.

We need to develop new
technologies that don't depend on oil for such purposes.

Don Reid

Piles of manure

Dear Editor,

Now, isn't it commendable: The
Archuleta County Board of Commissioners has decided to involve the
local taxpayer in their continuing search for solutions to county
road classification dilemmas by asking for volunteers to staff their
new Standing Road Committee before they further task County Road and
Bridge and take them off tearing up taxiways.

Now, isn't it also sad that those
same commissioners did not desire any public input on the Stevens
Field paving fiasco from other folks in the county before they go out
for bids? I wonder why they believe that elected officials can do as
they please on the issue? The people who pay the bills can just fund
this turkey on a continuing basis and learn to "love it!"

Well, I smell "Manure"
commissioners - piles of it. And what a magnificent display of
genuine, dedicated and compelling hypocrisy.

I guess that's just the way things
are done here in the "Ol' West."

Ridin' da brand,

Jim Sawicki

Parade of gardens

Dear Editor,

Now and for the last three years,
the house on the northeast corner of Apache and Ninth has had an
amazing array of perfect flowers and lawns. Too bad they were not
included in the recent parade of gardens.

Lee Sterling

Thanks again

Dear Editor,

After more years than I want to
remember, I am not renewing my subscription to your fine
paper.

I have not been diligent in
reading it, nor do I use the ads since I live in Ft. Worth. Also, I
have discovered another area in the west that I have adopted - Taos.
Being a native born New Mexican, (Lovington, November of 1934), I've
decided when I win the lottery that I'll have a summer place near
Taos, and not Pagosa. Your influx of westerners that don't like their
native place of California or Arizona has discouraged me from further
plans to settle in your area. I'm returning to my roots in New
Mexico, although I'll be several hundred miles north of my birth
place.

Thanks again for publishing an
outstanding weekly second only to the Wise County Messenger, Decatan,
Texas.

Thomas H. Watkins

Obituaries

Elizabeth
Anderson

Elizabeth Anderson passed away
Aug. 5, 2001 at her home in Pagosa Springs.

Mrs. Anderson was the maternal
aunt of Lenore and Gil Bright.

She is survived by a nephew,
William Cox of Montrose; grand nephews David and Steven Bright; grand
niece Kristina Embree and their families.

Elizabeth was a member of the
Woman's Civic Club and Daughters of the Nile. She was preceded in
death by her beloved sister, Hazle Neill of Pagosa Springs.

Memorials may be made in her honor
to the Sisson Library or the Humane Society.

Mr. Gomez was born Aug. 27, 1926
in Parkview, N.M., and attended Dulce Public School, St. Francis
Elementary in Lumberton, and Lourdes Academy in Albuquerque. He
graduated as valedictorian in 1945 from the El Rito Normal
School.

He joined the Army in 1951 and was
trained at Fort Meade, Md., Fort Houston, Texas and Fort Bliss,
Texas. He was discharged in 1953 as an Army medic.

He was a prominent businessman in
Lumberton and Gubernador, N.M., and in Coyote Park in Archuleta
County. He served as Rio Arriba County treasurer for four years, was
active in the Rio Arriba County Sheriff's Posse for many years and
was an active Democrat his entire life.

He was preceded in death by his
parents, Juan Lino Gomez Sr. and Elena Lopez Gomez of Lumberton;
sisters and brothers Miguelito, Abel, Gene and Juan Lino Gomez Jr. of
Lumberton; Helen Gomez Romero of Parkview; Isabelle Gomez Eaton of
Daly City, Calif.; and Dolores Gomez Luna of Tierra Amarilla.

He is survived by his wife, Cora
Vigil Gomez at the home in Dulce; children Donna Gomez Elote and
husband Erwin of Dulce; Frances Gomez Garibay and husband Pablo of
Lumberton; Sylvester Gomez and wife Rosie and Frank Gomez Jr. all of
Dulce; Patrick Gomez of San Diego, Calif.; Andrew Gomez and wife
Yvette and Augustine Gomez and wife Lisa, all of Dulce; Orlin Gomez
and wife Rhonda of Farmington; Yolanda Gomez Toya and husband Greg of
Albuquerque and Michelle Gomez Archuleta and husband Tony of
Lumberton; 20 grandchildren; a sister, Theresa Gomez Godwin and
husband Glenn of Lumberton and Sun Lakes, Ariz.; sisters-in-law
Lupita Gomez of Bloomfield and Adela Gomez of Lumberton;
brothers-in-law Salomon Luna of Tierra Amarilla and Everett Eaton of
Nevada; numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, godchildren and many other
relatives and friends.

Visitation was at 4 p.m. and a
rosary at 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 12, 2001 at Saint Francis Church in
Lumberton. Mass of Christian Burial was at 10 a.m. Monday at St.
Francis and interment followed in the Gomez Family Cemetery in
Dulce.

In lieu of flowers, contributions
may be made to the Saint Francis Church Building Fund in Lumberton.
Arrangements were entrusted to the Salazar family of Block-Salazar
Mortuary, Espanola.

Ivy Turner

Ivy Lou (Mobley) Turner passed
into heaven Aug. 5, 2001. She was born Sept. 27, 1939 in Pagosa
Springs and attended schools there, graduating Pagosa Springs High
School in 1957.

She had lived in Aztec the past 35
years where she worked alongside her family in the family business,
Bea's Greenhouse.

Ivy was preceded in death by her
father, her brother, Leroy Mobley; her hero and stepfather, Leland
Minium; and a nephew, Chad Jones.

She leaves her family who loved
and cherished her: her mother and best friend, Beatrice Minium; son,
Kenny Turner; daughters Melody Ahlgrim and husband Ken, and April
Turner; brothers Billy Mobley and wife Lavenda and Les Mobley and
wife Debbie; a sister, Joyce Jones and husband Clayton; five
grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

Ivy was adored by all who knew
her. She leaves gifts of much love and many memories, but can now
rest.

A memorial celebration will be
held at 2 p.m. Aug. 25 in the garden of the home of Joyce and Clayton
Jones in Flora Vista, N.M.

Memorial contributions, in lieu of
flowers, may be made to the Word of Life Christian Center, Building
Fund, 317 E. Murray Dr., Farmington, N.M., 87401.

People

Cabaret
Diosa

Audience members at the Four Corners Folk Festival are in for a
Latin treat. Put on your dancing shoes, because you won't be sitting
down when this band is through. Don't know the steps? Don't worry,
the band will show you how to Mambo like there's no tomorrow.

Contrary to what you may have heard, Cabaret Diosa is not a
subversive cult planting the seeds of free love and fierce fashion
consciousness among today's wayward youth. They are not a traveling
freakshow or spiritual revival. Cabaret Diosa is merely a band.

Yes, they are known for propagating what has come to be called
"Hi-Fi Latin Exotica." And yes, this music has become associated with
behavior considered by some to be taboo. However, Cabaret Diosa
claims no responsibility for the actions engaged in by their throngs
of devotees once the music takes over.

Simply put, Cabaret Diosa is a nine-piece musical ensemble. A
little big band if you will. Their passion is Latin music and the
"real big sound." Their mission: to make you dance. To dance as if it
were your last night on earth, as if your very pants were aflame.
This may explain the allegations of audience impropriety, etc.

If you are offended by the Mambo or the Rumba or the Cha Cha Cha
the band is sorry and truly saddened. But if you are free, join in
the new mambo revival as the caravan races headlong toward paradise.
Be not afraid, they come in peace.

The festival takes place Aug. 31-Sept. 2 on Reservoir Hill.
Tickets for the Four Corners Folk Festival are on sale at Moonlight
Books and Howlin' Wolf Music at advance prices through Aug. 29. After
that they many be purchased at the gate at higher prices. Information
is available by calling 731-5582.

Sports Page

Gridiron Pirates are
preparing to put IML title on the line

By John M. Motter

Pads are popping at Golden Peaks Stadium as
Head Coach Myron Stretton's Pirates begin defense of their
Intermountain League 2A football title.

This year, for the first time, Pagosa
gridders play all games, home and away, under the lights. All games
start at 7 p.m. Friday night with the exception of Bloomfield and
Piedra Vista. The Bloomfield game starts at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 22
in Pagosa Springs. The Piedra Vista game starts at 7:30, Friday,
Sept. 14, on the Piedra Vista turf.

Stretton and his assistant coaches pushed 37
padless, grunting, first-team candidates through a series of wind
sprints, jumping jacks, and special team exercises on Monday, the
first day of two-a-days.

Players wriggled into pads today for the
first time this season. Contact with opposing gridders is scheduled
Friday or Saturday next week against the Alamosa Mean Moose.

In his fourth season at the Pirate helm last
year, Stretton was chosen Coach of the Year by fellow IML coaches.
Last year, the Pirates were 7-2 for the regular season, 4-0 in league
play.

Repeating as league champs will require all
of Stretton's coaching skills. Only five starters return from last
year's champions. Missing are most starters from last year, including
league most valuable player, Tyrel Ross.

Leading the returnees on the offensive side
is senior Ronnie Janowski, All IML at quarterback last year. Joining
Janowski on the offensive eleven are all-purpose back Darin Lister, a
senior, and defensive end Jason Schutz, a sophomore. Lister also
handled most of the Pagosa punting and kicking chores last
year.

Returning starters on the defensive side of
the ball are junior linebacker Pablo Martinez, an all-league
honorable mention, and senior lineman Ethan Sanford.

"It's too early to predict how we'll turn
out this year," Stretton said. "I haven't evaluated the other teams,
yet. Our preseason schedule appears to be brutal again."

Stretton expects to continue the
multiple-offense attack he has employed with success during his
four-year tenure as head coach. On defense, he will continue the
43-D, a defense dictated by personnel.

Assisting Stretton with coaching duties this
year are Sean O'Donnell, who will work with the offensive line and
defensive backs; Scott White, who will work with offensive backs and
defensive ends; Randy Sorenson, who will work with receivers and
defensive backs; and Jim Shaffer, who will work with the defensive
and offensive lines. Volunteer helpers are Mike Marshall and Chris
Kelley.

The Pirate schedule is the same as last
year. August 29 Pagosa journeys to Dolores to engage the 1A Bears at
7 p.m. Following the Dolores game are successive preseason games
against powerful New Mexico schools.

Four local men and women were named winners
of Saturday's tennis mixer at the Fairfield courts. A draw of 14
played four pro sets of eight games each before the winners were
determined.

Bob Priess and Maurice Allen each won 23
games of the possible 32; Tina Rolig won 21 games; Christine Wyman
won 19. After each pro set was played, players changed partners,
allowing everyone to play with a different teammate for the next set.

"For the first event of the season, the
mixer was a great success," said Dale Schwicker, tennis pro.

Schwicker also announced a mixed doubles
tournament scheduled for Sept. 8 beginning at 8 a.m. Awards for the
winning team and runner-up will be given.

For registration information, call
731-8060.

United Way sets golf
tournament Sept. 8

By Bob Eggleston

Start getting your team together for the
third annual United Way Golf Tournament scheduled for Saturday, Sept.
8.

The format will be a 4-person ABCD Scramble.
A team can't have more than one player below a 10 handicap, there
can't be more than two players with handicaps below 15, and more than
three players below a 20 handicap.

The Pagosa Springs Golf Club, 731-4755, will
host and help put teams together. If a person doesn't have a team or
a handicap, the golf shop will place them on a team.

Everyone is welcome to participate in the
event. It is a major fundraiser for Archuleta County United Way.

The goal this year for Archuleta County
Untied Way is $60,000. United Way supports 12 local health and human
services agencies in the county.

Troy Persson took the honors in the gross
competition with an even-par 71, followed by Sean O'Donnell at 75,
and Gene Johnson at 80.

Bob Chitwood bested the field (and his
handicap) by a wide margin, winning the net competition with an
11-under-par 60. Alan Leo was second with a 66 and Ray Henslee was
third with 69.

"We're now halfway through the league season
and many of our golfers are in mid-season form, playing better than
their handicaps," said Alan Schutz, assistant course professional.
"Net scores in the 60s by mid- and high-handicappers prove that
everyone has a chance to win in our league."

The Men's League is open to golfers of all
levels. League dues are $25 for the season, payable in the pro shop.
Competition begins every Wednesday at 1 p.m. Sign up in the men's
locker room before 5 p.m. the Tuesday afternoon before each play
day.

'Special talents'
developing on soccer field

By Richard
Walter

The always effervescent Lindsey
Kurt-Mason is as enthusiastic as ever about his team's chances, but
seems a little more reserved this year.

The Pagosa Pirates soccer coach
thinks his squad can be a challenger for honors but he's not going
overboard with predictions.

Gone from the 2000 squad, which
surprised many with an advance to state quarterfinal play against
Denver Christian, is all-everything midfielder Daniel Crenshaw, the
player Kurt-Mason counted on as his inspirational leader, and striker
Mike Pierce who was a constant offensive threat.

But returning are a cadre of
experienced juniors who were starters in 2000, including Kurt-Mason's
son, Jordan, a key to the Pirate defensive scheme, Zeb Gill, who
roamed at left striker, and team scoring leader Kyle Sanders. The
latter was injured in a boating accident last weekend, was present
but unable to perform Monday, but was in action Tuesday.

Add to that mix returning senior
Trent Sanders, veteran goalkeepers Matt Mesker and Josh Soniat, both
of whom can also play attack positions, and defensive stalwarts Ryan
Lister and Reuben Coray, and you have the makings of a standout
squad.

Kurt-Mason had 20 players on the
field for the first day of practice Monday morning, 26 Tuesday
afternoon, and expected several more to straggle in as family
vacations and summer jobs end.

"They've been working hard and
I've seen some strong leadership from the veterans," Kurt-Mason said.
"I see some special talents being exhibited on the practice field and
evidence of melding together as a team already."

In the first week, he said, "the
kids are normally sucking wind. But this group came in great shape.
Many have participated in summer camps and have worked out on their
own in order to be ready for the season."

To put his feelings about the team
into one word, Kurt-Mason said, "Call me 'happy.'"

Colorado High School Activities
Association has placed Pagosa Springs in a league that may exist
mostly on paper.

In addition to the Pirates, the
league includes Bayfield (which Pagosa ousted from playoff contention
in a home field shootout last year), Center, which withdrew from
participation late last season, Sierra Grande (which did not field a
team last year and probably won't this year), and LaVeta, which
fielded a coed team last year and gave several others a run for their
laurels.

The Pirate schedule shows home and
home against Bayfield, and no games against any of the other teams in
their league.

Instead, they are scheduled for
home and home matches against perennial state contender Telluride,
Crested Butte and Ridgway and home contests against Cortez from Class
4A and Piedra Vista of Farmington.

Kurt-Mason, if the rains subside
enough to allow practice fields to dry, hoped to get into full scale
intra-squad confrontations by the end of this week.

That will leave two weeks of
conditioning and play making practice before the Sept. 1 home and
season opener against the Cortez Panthers.

Kurt-Mason said he will not name
varsity starters for at least another week, preferring to work
different combinations of players to develop team play
concepts.

Weather Stats

Date

High

Low

Precipitation

Type

Depth

Moisture

8/8

78

52

R

-

.30

8/9

77

54

R

-

T

8/10

78

51

-

-

-

8/11

78

52

R

-

.15

8/12

76

53

R

-

.17

8/13

77

55

R

-

.46

8/14

76

51

R

-

.19

Births

Hanning

Steve and Kerri Haning are happy to announce the birth of their
son, Sterling Craig Haning. Sterling was born July 16. He weighed 6
pounds, 8 ounces and was 19 inches long.

Biz Beat

Dr. Bill Thornell opened Pagosa Dental Aug. 1, with offices in the
Pagosa Family Medicine Center, 75 South Pagosa Boulevard, near the
intersection of South Pagosa and U.S. 160.

Pagosa Dental provides patients with a full range of services to
meet all dental needs, including cosmetic and restorative dentistry.

United Way of Southwest Colorado is offering
a unique opportunity to spend a day on horseback in the stunning San
Juan Mountains, witness the wildlife in their natural habitat and
raise money to support our community all in one fell swoop.

Ride the Weminuche will take place Saturday,
beginning at 9 a.m. at the historic Poma Ranch located 27 miles north
on Piedra Road from U.S. 160.

Matt Poma will be your host on this
wonderful adventure and I can assure you, based on my own experience,
he is the "host with the most." No one loves the land quite like
Matt, and he relishes opportunities to share it with other folks. If
you have never seen the Poma Ranch, I encourage you to do so - it
will simply take your breath away.

The day will include morning and afternoon
horseback riding, a real chuckwagon lunch including brisket, chicken,
ribs and beans, and a live auction for western merchandise including
a $3,000 scholarship for the Pat Parelli International Study Center
and an original print from the Lori Salisbury Gallery.

Cost for this day will be $45 if you bring
your own horse and tack, or $75 if you need to rent same.
Registration fees include lunch.

Please call Kathi DeClark at (970) 946-2057
to register or for information on available lodging or overnight
accommodations for you and/or your horse. Don't miss this opportunity
to see the 960-acre Poma Ranch, spend a glorious day outside,
experience a bona fide chuckwagon lunch and support the United Way
program all at the same time.

Photographers needed

We need all of our talented local
photographers to submit slides and pictures (with negatives) to us by
the end of the month for consideration to be featured on our upcoming
Chamber of Commerce screen saver.

Thanks to a thoughtful Pagosa resident who
found a screen saver in another Colorado town and brought it in for
us to see, we decided this would be a great project for us.

After some initial research, we discovered
we could create a wonderful screen saver and make it very affordable.
It will be the perfect stocking stuffer for Christmas this year or
just generally a great gift for any occasion. But, I digress - before
we can put the screen saver together with 32 images, we need the
images. We're concentrating on Pagosa scenes, things that make us
unique even in beautiful Colorado.

The Chamber screen saver committee spent
some time brainstorming on what those images might be and came up
with, just to name a few, the following: Chimney Rock (all seasons),
balloons, main street scenes, special events, Williams Creek,
Four-Mile Falls, Treasure Falls, rodeo, county fair, all winter and
summer activities and wildlife. Once again, this is not an exclusive
list, and we are open to any and all suggestions. Naturally, your
name will accompany your image on the screen saver.

Please contact us with any questions at
264-2360 or just bring us your slides or pictures (with negatives) on
or before Aug. 31. This will be just another cool way to make all
your friends and relatives jealous that you live in such a beautiful
place.

Newsletter inserts

Believe it or not, it's once again time to
bring us your inserts for the September quarterly newsletter, The
Chamber Communique.

For those who may not be familiar with this
economic marketing tool, you simply bring us 725 copies of your
insert (please do not fold) and a check for $40, and your message
will reach the over 765 Chamber members. We encourage you to use
colorful paper and both sides if you like. There is just no better
way to reach more people with fewer dollars. Please bring those to us
by Aug. 29 for inclusion in the newsletter. We try to get the
newsletter out some time the first week of September, and we would
love to include your insert. It's a terrific way to let people know
more about a move, a special you're offering, a big sale or
clearance, new owners, a new service - just about anything.

Call us at 264-2360 with any
questions.

Membership

As September approaches, more and more
renewals come with it, and this week it seems that new members are
heading our way as well. We have six new members to introduce to you
this week and fourteen renewals. Grab a cup of coffee, curl up and
relax.

Three of our new businesses are connected to
the Ridgeview Center with busy lady Betty Slade at the helm of two.
Betty brings us The Ridge at Pagosa Springs located at 525 Navajo
Trail Drive in the Ridgeview Center. The Ridge offers the largest
year-round convention and banquet facility in the Four Corners area
with complete meeting amenities. This facility boasts 6,400 square
feet and with the capability of serving 700 guests. Vince Sencich
with Enzo's Catering acts as the in-house caterer for all functions.
I personally attended a Club 20 meeting at The Ridge last week and
can attest that this is a lovely meeting place. Please call Betty at
731-3883 for more information about The Ridge of Pagosa
Springs.

Betty also brings us the Four Corners
Gallery of Pagosa located in the Ridgeview Center as well. This is an
art gallery featuring traditional and Southwest art, pottery,
jewelry, sculptures, and hand-painted silk scarves. The work of many
Four Corners artists appears in the Four Corners Gallery of Pagosa.
Betty Slade would be happy to answer any questions you might have at
731-3800.

The third business to join us in the
Ridgeview Center is the Antique and Collectible Mall with Pamela
Suneby as the contact. You will find antiques and collectibles
ranging from glassware to furniture sold by dealers hailing from all
over the Four Corners area. I expect word any day that they have
opened their doors and will share that with you when it comes in. In
the meantime, please contact Pamela at 731-3800 with any
questions.

Our old pal, Eddie Dale, joins us with a
brand new business, 3-D Inspection Services (a Division of Dale
Construction, Inc.). In addition to Dale Construction, Inc. 3-D
Inspection Services is your source for home inspection needs
providing a full, comprehensive, professional, objective visual
examination of the condition of a home. Eddie brings to this business
twenty years experience and invites you to give him a call at
731-4724 for more information about 3-D Inspection Services.

John and Sara Essig brings us our next new
business, Sara's Kitchen Cabinets located at 20345 West U.S. 160,
Unit 105, in the Mountain View Plaza. Sara's Kitchen Cabinets offers
a wide range of cabinetry ranging from economy to full custom. They
also carry a large selection of woods, knotty woods, stains and paint
colors. You will receive free measurements, designs and estimates.
For more information, please give John and Sara a call at
731-1056.

Nina Allen joins us next with her home
business, Essence of Earth. I ran into Nina recently at the Fairfield
Arts and Crafts Show and picked up a few of her products, and quickly
thereafter became addicted to her almond lotion. Nina offers all
natural handmade soaps, lotions and bath products and will create
gift baskets for each and every occasion. She will also do custom
requests for you. Nina offers all natural handmade soaps, lotions,
and bath products and will create gift baskets for each and every
occasion. She will also do custom requests for you. Someone at the
craft show had asked her to create something for them that didn't
appear in her inventory and she whipped it up for them right away.
You can give Nina a call at 264-6570 to learn more about Essence of
Earth.

Renewals this week include Ron and Julia
Jones with the Pagosa Riverside Campground; Victoria (the Vicksters)
Appenzeller with Land Properties, Inc.; Jerry and Rose Zepnick with
Lantern Dancer Gallery and Gifts; Gary Lucas with Rio Grande Savings
and Loan Association; Judy Nicholson with Civil Design Team, Inc.;
Steve Wirth with Village Interiors Carpet One; Bernard R. Martinez
with Pine Valley Rental and Sales, Inc.; Radine Downey (new owner)
with the Best Western Oakridge; Shirley Luhnow with Just Gourd-Jus;
and Eddie Dale with Dale Construction, Inc.

Our Associate Member renewals this week
include Rich and (Diplomat) Carol Gunson; former Chamber Director,
Mamie Lynch; longtime Diplomats Richard and Lorraine Raymond; and Don
and (Diplomat) Patsy Braune. Our Diplomats have a way of contributing
both time and monet to the Chamber for which we are eternally
grateful.

Senior News

By Janet Copeland

Third summer picnic slated
Friday in Town Park

Our third picnic in the park for the summer is tomorrow. We hope
for a large turnout - bring your family members along if you would
like. Suggested donations are $2.25 for folks over 60 and a required
fee of $4.50 for others.

Patty Tillerson, who takes blood pressures for us has
rescheduled to Aug. 24 because of the picnic tomorrow.

We thank Mary O'Neil, AAA Ombudsman for Archuleta County,
who spoke to us on Wednesday referencing the Colorado Ombudsman
Program.

This program is concerned with protecting the civil and human
rights of elderly persons in long-term care facilities, solving and
mediating problems and investigating complaints.

To report problems or concerns, to learn more about the Colorado
Ombudsman Program, or to seek information about long-term care
facilities, you may contact Mary at 259-1967.

The AARP 55 Alive Driver Safety Class will take place at
the Methodist Church Sept. 12 and 13. Individuals ages 50 and above
need to take this course, which may reduce automobile insurance
premiums. Cost of the class is $10. Contact Don Hurt at 264-2337 for
further information and to sign up.

We welcome Agnes Maez who recently joined our kitchen crew.

It was good to have Norm and Anna Denney, Kevin Warner, Arthur and
Ramona Ruiz, Rosemary LaVigne, Maz and Esther Peralta, and Kurt and
Shirley Killion's sons Cliff, Brad and Wes Killion and their guests
Michele Johnson and Boni Etter with us this week. We welcome all
guests and returning members and hope they will join us more often.

Our Senior of the Week for last week was Kent Shaffer, and
for this week is Medina Hamilton. Both of these folks are important
members of our senior family and we are happy to honor them.

Musetta needs volunteers to label photos and place them in
albums, and to fill membership packets. Please contact her if you are
willing to help.

We plan a fun evening Aug. 23 at the Bar D Chuckwagon in
Durango for dinner and entertainment. Please note prices and sign up
soon if you wish to attend. You may call 264-2167 and talk to Cindy
or Musetta if you have questions.

Each Tuesday morning in August at 8:30 a.m. there will be a
90-minute presentation at the Senior Center on Bill Moyer's series
"Death and Dying" - one video presented each time, four total. This
is very informative, especially as it relates to Hospice care, etc.,
so we hope folks will take time to attend these presentations.

Pagosa Lakes

By Ming Steen

Littleton, Englewood
contestants win triathlon titles

Last Saturday's tenth annual Pagosa Lakes
High-Tri Triathlon - a 7.2 mile run, 14.4 mile mountain bike and a
half-mile swim - went smoothly. In spite of the consistent late
afternoon monsoons, the trail was ridable with a couple of boggy
sections. The morning was cool. In short, mother nature
cooperated.

There were 60 participants. Twenty-five of
them were from out of town. Visiting participants commented on the
friendly, family-oriented nature of the event and the beauty of the
course. The triathlon course includes some single-track trail with a
couple of technical spots, some woods, some meadows, some gravel
roads and some asphalt. Occasionally it takes someone from outside to
remind us of the specialness of this place we call home.

Local athletes who participated in
Saturday's triathlon did enjoy the opportunity to pit their
athleticism against other participants, particularly the unknown
competitors from outside of Pagosa. There is, in general, a good
sense of everyone being there to share the day with each other.
Enjoyment is partly enhanced by a low stress, but not lightly
competitive attitude of organizers and participants.

In the men's overall division, Matt
Kattensette from Littleton finished in first place with a time of 2
hours 1 minute, 37 seconds. Local triathlete Bob Kimber finished in
second place with a time of 2 hours 2 minutes, 6 seconds. Following
in third place was Mark Campbell with 2 hours 3 minutes, 11 seconds.
Mark is from Ophir.

In the women's overall division, Debbie
Maloney from Englewood crossed the finish line with a 2:18.45.
Maloney was followed by two Pagosans: Tammy Holcomb who finished
second in 2:30.13 and I came in third with a 2:30.54.

In team competition, Reid Kelly, Chantelle
Kay and Molly Enright topped the field with a 2:00.44. Jack Searle,
Carolyn Feller and Chris Nobles came in second with a 2:01.14. Byron
Monterosso and Courtney Steen, a two-person team placed third with a
time of 2:03.33. All three teams are from Pagosa. Byron recently
moved back to L.A., but came back for the triathlon.

It was a good triathlon - a fantastic
success for the 60 smiling, exhausted athletes. Everyone was
applauded, not just those finishing first.

Many volunteers offered logistical support
the entire morning. These volunteers gave form, order and direction
to the event. Local businesses, as usual, threw in generous prizes. I
thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

United Way benifit

"Ride The Weminuche," a four-hour horseback
ride in the beautiful mountains surrounding the Poma Ranch will take
place Saturday. Cost for the ride is $45 if you rent a horse, $45 if
you bring your own horse and $15 if you have lunch only. This event
will raise needed funds for United Way. Jim Harris, a musician who
recently moved here from New Mexico, will entertain on his fiddle.

Please come out and enjoy the morning and
support United Way. Call Kathi DeClark (1-946-2057) for additional
information. The ride starts at 9 a.m. at the Poma Ranch.

Local
Chatter

By Kate Terry

Horse felled: Bitten by snake
in Oklahoma

Rick Majors, the man from Bowling Green,
Ky., who had a dream to ride a horse to the Rocky Mountains won't
make it. He's back home again. T.J., his Tennessee Walking Horse, was
bitten by a snake near Cherokee, Okla., and it was four days before
they knew if T.J. would live.

But Rick, who was diagnosed with terminal
lung cancer last February and started his trek west in May, is
philosophical. He says: "It was an adventure I'll never forget, but I
don't want to have another. I made a lot of friends I'll never
forget."

And, he continues, "It really restores your
faith in mankind, the way that people treated me, people I didn't
even know. People would take us in, do our laundry, give us supper,
put us up in hotels, all at their own expense. If we offered to pay,
they wouldn't take it."

But the trip has a silver lining. While
passing through Neosho, Mo., T.J. injured his foot and the party
spent 10 days there. While in Neosho, Rick befriended a young boy who
was having problems at home and at school. According to the boy's
mother, who wrote Rick a letter, Rick turned her son around.

Rick, whose great-grandfather, Alexander
Majors, was one of the founders of the Pony Express - the others
being William Waddle and William Russell - wanted to visit the Rocky
Mountains. A friend suggested Pagosa Springs as a destination. They
were to have connected with Pat Parelli upon arrival in Pagosa
Springs.

I think that people will agree it would have
been great fun to welcome Rick Majors, but in the meantime he says,
"I'm glad to be home again. I don't think I'll ever leave again."

And we can say, "We're glad you thought of
us as a destination."

Around town

The San Juan Outdoor Club won an award for
Most Volunteers in the Adopt a Highway Program, "Spruce Up Colorado,"
sponsored by the state of Colorado.

Forty-one people turned out. The PLPOA staff
helped, with 10 members volunteering. They closed their office to do
so.

Jean Carson was the chairman of the
endeavor. Her prize was a small carrying bag containing a water
bottle, first aid supplies, antiseptic wipes and sun screen.

About town

The Humane Society is looking for donations
of hors d'oeuvres for the Auction for the Animals to be held Aug. 24
at the Ridgeview Mall. Please call Nancy Ray at 731-3122 or Annie Jo
Bishel at 264-5549 if you can help.

Skunk relief

This remedy for treating skunk infected dogs
has been contributed: one bottle peroxide, one small box baking soda,
one quart water, and a few drops of dish detergent.

And this remedy to unclog a drain comes from
the Colorado Extension: Make a solution of equal parts of salt,
vinegar and baking soda. Pour down drain and let set for 15 minutes.
Then flush with boiling water. (Years ago a plumber told me that
using this solution once a week would keep drains open).

Fun on the run

Old age advantages

 Kidnappers are not very interested in
you

 In a hostage situation, you are likely to
be released first

 No one expects you to run into a burning
building

 People call at 9 p.m. and ask, "Did I wake
you?"

 People no longer view you as a
hypochondriac

 There is nothing left to learn the hard
way

 Things you buy now won't wear out

 You can eat dinner at 4 p.m.

 You enjoy hearing about other people's
operations

 You get into heated arguments about
pension plans

 You have a party and neighbors don't even
realize it

 You no longer think of speed limits as a
challenge

 You quit trying to hold your stomach in,
no matter who walks into the room

 You sing along with elevator music

 Your eyes won't get much worse

 Your investment in health insurance is
finally beginning to pay off

 Your joints are more accurate
meteorologists than the national weather service

 Your secrets are safe with your friends
because they can't remember them either

 Your supply of brain cells is finally down
to a manageable size

 You can't remember who sent you this
list.

Veterans
Corner

By: Andy
Fautheree

Death benefits help ease
family's pain

Throughout the year 2001, it is estimated
that an average of 1,500 American veterans will die each day.

While a majority of veteran deaths will come
from the aging population of those who served in WW I, WW II, and
Korea, a disproportionate number will come from those who served in
Vietnam and the Gulf War. In addition to the many lifetime benefits
afforded to veterans discharged under other than dishonorable
conditions, several death benefits are offered to ease the pain of
surviving family members and to recognize the memory and sacrifice of
those who served.

Who is eligible? Any veteran who served
their required term of service and received an appropriate discharge.
Benefits include free burial in a National Veterans Cemetery, an
appropriate headstone or marker, a Presidential Memorial Certificate,
military funeral honors, a burial flag, and possible reimbursement of
some burial expenses.

While burial in a national cemetery is an
option to consider, all other benefits are available to the family of
those interred in community, church or private cemeteries. Spouses
and minor children of eligible veterans may also be buried in
national cemeteries without cost. Preparation of the body,
transportation and the cost of a casket are not normally
covered.

The VA provides headstones or markers for
the unmarked graves of veterans anywhere in the world and of eligible
dependents of veterans buried in military post, state veteran or
national cemeteries. When burial occurs in other than a military
post, state veteran or national cemetery, the headstone or marker
must be applied for from VA. It is free and shipped at government
expense; however, the VA does not pay the cost of placement. The
family must also apply for the Presidential Memorial Certificate, the
burial flag, and for Military Honors.

VA reimbursement for burial expenses ranges
from $0 to $1,500 depending on the status of the veteran. If death
was the result of a service-connected disability rated by the VA, up
to $1,500 in expenses are reimbursed. If the veteran was eligible to
receive VA compensation or pension, or the veteran died in a VA
facility, up to $300 in expenses are reimbursed. If the veteran was
discharged from active duty due to a service-connected disability,
was eligible for VA compensation or pension, or died in a VA
facility, the VA will also pay a $150 plot allowance for internment
in other than a government cemetery.

Burial benefits are generally available to a
veteran's family up to two years after the death of the veteran. If
you, a family member, friend or acquaintance, have experienced the
tragic death of a veteran, please call or stop by the Veterans
Service Office to determine eligibility and to complete the
appropriate paperwork.

For information on these and other VA
benefits, please call or stop by the office located on the lower
floor of the Archuleta County Courthouse. The office number is
264-2304, the FAX number is 264-5949, and E-mail is
vsoarch@pagosa.net. The office is open from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4
p.m. Monday through Thursday, or Friday by appointment. Bring your DD
Form 214 (discharge) for registration with the county, application
for VA programs, and for filing in the VSO office.

Parks &
Rec

by Douglas
Call

Youth Soccer coaches to meet
Tuesday

This year's youth soccer program is underway
but the $10 early registration ended last week. Children can still
register at $15 until Aug. 24. There will be a coaches' meeting at 6
p.m. Aug. 21 in Town Hall and first practices will be Aug. 27.

Following the Town Hall meeting, coaches for
the Scorer's League will form their teams through a draft process and
practices will be scheduled.

Games will begin Sept. 11 and will be played
at 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Registration forms are available at Town
Hall.

The Town Recreation Department is seeking
sponsors for the upcoming soccer season. A sponsorship fee of $200
provides teams with shirts bearing the sponsor's name, which players
keep.

Call the recreation department at 264-4151,
ext. 232 if your business is interested in sponsoring a team. The
department is also looking for persons interested in officiating
soccer games or field supervising for the season.

Adult softball

Adult league tournaments ended last week for
both men's and coed leagues.

In the competitive tournament, Ken's
Performance came away with both league and tournament championships,
beating P.P.P. Playboys 28-8 in the "if necessary" game. In the
recreational league, the Tigers of Dulce came away as tournament
champions, beating American Legion 14-11 in the final game.

Ken's Performance/Paint Connection took the
coed tournament championship beating Radio Shack 14-3 in the final
game. Congratulations to all players and a big thanks to all the
sponsors who made this year's season a success.

Adult flag football

The adult flag football season will start in
mid-September. A meeting is scheduled later this month to form teams,
discuss rules and develop a schedule.

For more information, contact Summer at the
recreation department at 264-4151, ext. 232.

Park Commission

The next Park and Recreation Commission
meeting is scheduled at 6 p.m. Monday in Town Hall. The commission
holds monthly meetings to discuss park and recreation issues.

Monday's agenda includes an update on the
tree-thinning program on Reservoir Hill, renewal of a rental
agreement for a radio tower on the Hill, a recreation update and
more. All commission meetings are open to the public.

Arts Line

by Helen L.
Richardson

Photgraphic show opens at
Gallery

Tonight, tonight won't be like any night.

Join fellow Pagosans tonight in premiering a
new exhibit at the Pagosa Springs Arts Council Gallery in Town Park.
The opening reception for photographic works by Patricia Francis and
Denise Mudrock is from 5-7 p.m. at the gallery and their images will
be on display until Sept. 5.

Denise Mudrock has made photography an
important part of her life since she received a 35mm camera for her
16th birthday. She began honing her skills with photography classes
in high school and, since moving to Pagosa Springs 15 years ago,
continues learning through local workshops and classes and a great
deal of shooting.

While Denise finds much enjoyment in
creating the images, she also likes to push herself to improve. She
especially likes the challenge of entering the local arts council
photography contests and analyzing the competition.

Enjoy the familiar as you study Denise's
images of the diverse southwest; then journey afar with Patricia
Francis as she expresses her vision of Italian landscapes.

Patricia also was introduced to photography
in her teens. She has spent her life in Colorado and New Mexico and
the magic scenery inspires her to continue developing her photography
skills. She studied at the Santa Fe Workshops on the Saint John's
College campus and, more recently, with Kit Frost at Smiley Studios
in Durango. These classes have included slot canyon workshops, black
and white processing, and advanced black and white technique
courses.

When you visit the gallery, allow time to
stop in the gift shop which features locally created arts and
crafts.

Home and Garden Tour

The Aug. 12 PSAC Home and Garden Tour was a
big success thanks to all the generous people who opened their homes
and gardens and to all ticket holders. We plan to do it again next
year.

Special thanks to the following for opening
their homes and gardens: Ranza and Barbara Boggess; the PAWS
Xeriscape Demonstration Garden; John and Sandra Applegate; John and
Cheryl Nelson; Laurie Breckinridge and Julie Wilif; Jack and Katy
Threet; Anthony and Ronnie Doctor; and Walter and Doris Green.

Pagosa Pretenders

The Pagosa Pretenders Family Theater
presents "The Legendary Life of a Local: A Story About Fred Harmon
and Red Ryder." Bring an umbrella to chase away raindrops for this
outdoor dinner theater held at the Fred Harmon Art Museum at U.S. 160
and Piedra Road, Aug. 17, 18, and 25.

On August 17 and 18, dinner entertainment
will be provided by Mountain Harmony Ladies Choir. On August 25, John
Graves and Warron Big Eagle will provide dinner entertainment.

A barbeque-style dinner will be served from
5:30-6:30. The menu includes beef barbecue brisket sandwich, mixed
green salad with house dressing, baked beans, and fruit cobbler. If
you prefer a vegetable sandwich, please make the request when you
purchase the ticket.

No dinner will be served Aug. 24 so tickets
for that performance are $5 for adults and $3 for children under 12.
Tickets for the Aug. 24 performance may be purchased in advance or at
the door.

All performances are at 7 p.m. Tickets for
dinner and performance will be sold in advance only, at least 24
hours prior to show time. Dinner and performance tickets are $15 for
adults and $8 for children under 12 and can be purchased at the
Chamber of Commerce, Sisson Library, Wolf Tracks Bookstore and Coffee
House, The Plaid Pony, and the PSAC gallery. A discount is available
to arts council members when tickets are purchased at the
gallery.

Pagosa Pretenders Family Theatre is a
non-profit division of the Pagosa Springs Arts Council. All proceeds
from the show will be donated to support our community.

For additional information, contact Susan
Garman at 731-2485.

House concert

The Whistle Pig house concert Sept. 30 will
feature Bruce Hayes, mandolin virtuoso, songwriter, guitarist, and
vocalist. A $7 donation is requested and includes homemade desserts
and coffee or tea. Call Bill and Clarissa Hudson at 264-2491 for
reservations and information or visit the Whistle Pig website at
www.hudson hudson.com/whistlepig.

Tole painters

Angel Box Painters, a division of the PSAC,
meets every Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. to tole paint small boxes which are
sent to hospitals to be given to parents who have lost infants in
death.

For more information, call Rosie Hatchett at
264-6987.

Exhibit schedule

Applications for exhibits in the year 2001
are still available at the Moonlight Book Store in town and Wolf
Tracks Bookstore and Coffee Co. as well as at the arts council
gallery in Town Park. There's one two-week exhibit time slot
available that is bound to be filled quickly, so turn in your
application to the gallery ASAP.

Calling writers

Writers, give us a call if you would like to
write the PSAC Artsline column in the SUN when there are five
Thursdays in a month. "Petroglyph," the PSAC quarterly newsletter, is
in need of a layout person.

The Pagosa Springs Arts Council Gallery and
Gift Shop are located in Town Park. Summer hours are 10 a.m. to 5
p.m. and winter hours are 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday through
Saturday. Phone 264-5020.

Extension
Viewpoints

By Bill Nobles

Use windfall to increase
investments

Friday - Colorado Kids, Extension Office, 5
p.m.

It's your money

If you want more money to travel, pay for
education for you or your children, and have adequate funds to enjoy
retirement, now is the time (no matter how old you are) to start an
investment program by saving those dollars that seem to slip away
each day.

One way of achieving your financial dream is
to use windfalls such as gifts, tax refunds and garage sale earnings
to increase your investments. Here are several tips on using
windfalls to make financial progress.

 If you are getting a tax refund every
year, change your withholding exemptions so less tax is withheld from
each paycheck. Put extra money into an automatic savings plan

 Invest in yourself. Upgrade your work
skills by taking classes

 Pay off your credit cards or car loan. Put
what you were paying each month into a savings plan or mutual fund
instead

 If you need better transportation, use a
windfall to make the largest possible down payment on a
vehicle

 Consolidate all your loans into a single
home equity loan. Apply your windfall to the amount financed. When
you've paid off the home equity loan, keep saving. Cut up your credit
cards and live on your paycheck

 Review your home mortgage. There are three
ways you can save over the life of your mortgage. You can apply the
windfall to your principal, which could save months of mortgage
payments in the future; you can refinance the loan at a lower
interest rate and add your windfall to the equity, which can lower
your payments and save thousands of dollars; or you can refinance as
a 15-year mortgage. On a $100,000 fixed-rate loan at 8 percent
interest, you will pay $90,000 less over the life of the loan than
you would with a 30-year mortgage

 Take your windfall to a consumer credit
counseling office and work out a total budgeting/debt reduction
plan

 Check out the American Savings Education
Council Web site at www.asec.org/toolshm.htm
<http://www.asec.org/toolshm.htm.> Use their interactive
Ballpark Estimate to calculate what you might need for retirement.
Then start your retirement plan right away.

Library News

By: Lenore Bright

Library Internet - World Wide
Wait

WWW really stands for "World Wide Wait."

At least that how it has seemed the past few
weeks. The library Internet connection has been down sporadically due
to circumstances beyond our control. The local Internet service
providers are jockeying for position. Until some bankruptcies and
other financial problems are settled, this situation probably will
not get any better.

The library connection is part of a network
and we are at the mercy of many other players - none of which wants
to take responsibility for the glitches. We apologize for the
inconvenience but don't see it being fixed very soon.

Boom, bust and battle

Just a reminder that we have this fine KWUF
radio program on tapes that can be checked out. John Graves and John
Porter provide this material. They bring us the tapes after the
programs. These are good music and history episodes.

Auction for animals

The Humane Society's annual "Auction For The
Animals," is coming up on August 24. We have many of the items on
display at the library that will be auctioned. Come by and see what
you'd like to bid on. We urge you to support this worthy cause at the
Ridgeview Mall. Enjoy an evening of food, drink and excitement.
Tickets are available at the library, the Chamber and the Pack
Rack.

New books

Cathy has a stack of great new books for the
ladies to process. You may want to get your names on the hold
list.

Andrew Greeley's new mystery, "The Bishop
and the Beggar Girl of St. Germain," finds Bishop Blackie Ryan in
Paris.

"The Colorado Guide," is the best selling
and ultimate guide to our state. It gives regional history and
attractions, scenic drives, shopping and restaurants among other
tips. It is well done and fairly up-to-date.

"Every Mistake in the Book: a Business
How-Not-To," by F.J. Lennon is a lifesaving guide to help you learn
from other peoples' mistakes in business. This is a funny, easy read
to help anyone avoid mistakes from a man who says he has made them
all.

"The Catsitters," by James Wolcott is an
adroit comedy about an unmarried man - bartender by day, actor by
night - who lives with his jukebox and cat. Wolcott is the cultural
critic for Vanity Fair. He's written for Village Voice, Esquire,
Harper's and the New Yorker. The blurb on the cover says that this is
a novel even Wolcott could love.

In our growing collection of medical books,
we find "What you Really Need to Know About Moles and Melanoma," by
Drs. Jill Schofield and William Robinson. This is the latest
information on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, and
follow-up.

Young children have important tasks to
practice that will eventually provide them with a solid base for
learning. Each experience they encounter with the environment offers
a new opportunity to increase their understanding of the
world.

The important aspect of their discoveries is
how the experience fits into their life - how it connects.

At the Pagosa Early Childhood Center, the
belief is that a high quality, early childhood program provides a
safe and nurturing environment that promotes physical, social,
emotional and cognitive development of young children while
responding to the needs of families.

The main objective is to promote and provide
developmentally appropriate activities, materials and expectations
for children 3 to 5 years old within the scope of all comprehensive
services of the Head Start performance standards.

They currently have several preschool
program options, the first of which is the Colorado Preschool Program
and Head Start program which both include part-day (morning) and
part-year plans. They go four days a week, Tuesday through Friday,
with free breakfast and lunch.

Families must meet income guidelines.

Another option is Head Start and Colorado
Child Care Assistance (CCAP). This is a full-day, full-year program
that runs five days a week. Parents must be working, in training, or
going to school. Families may have a co-payment every month, but
their children are given free breakfast, lunch and afternoon
snacks.

Program similarities include all children
receiving the same age-appropriate education. They all receive
developmental and dental screening. Parents receive information and a
list of programs on topics including child development, child abuse,
parenting, etc. They are then assisted in obtaining any services
suffered by the community.

Although there are income guidelines to be
followed, income is not the only major factor for qualifying at
Pagosa Early Childhood Center. Margie Lucero, area eligibility and
program support technician, works with each family to thoroughly
assess its needs and offer guidance that will help the family attain
eligibility.

The main focus of the center right now is
meeting target enrollment and providing childcare for as many
families as possible. Parents are their most valuable resource
because they are the main source of information concerning all
aspects of their children. They also inform teachers at the center of
community needs, from a different point of view. This can reveal a
need to create and pursue new avenues.

If you would like to learn more about The
Pagosa Early Childhood Center, you can call 264-2484 or
264-2512.

To give you a heads-up for enrollment, you
can start gathering your child's birth certificate or baptismal
record, locate their record of immunizations, social security
numbers, TANF and Medicaid card (if applicable), proof of family
income for the past 12 months or the previous income tax year, and
names and phone number of emergency contact people.

Crusing with
Cruse

By Katherine Cruse

The Buzz about bears and King's
bees

When I told people I was going out to see
Charlie King's beehives and learn about bees, the burning question on
everybody's lips was - "What about bears? Don't bears get into the
hives?"

So, of course, that's the first thing I
asked Charlie.

Charlie is an amateur beekeeper. His
grandfather was a professional beekeeper, back in Pennsylvania. His
granddaughter is keeping bees.

Apparently the beekeeping gene skips a
generation.

Charlie says he does it for fun. "When it
quits being fun, then I'll quit keeping bees."

My own question, when I first learned that
Charlie was a beekeeper, was, "Do you leave the bees enough honey to
make it through the winter, or do you let them starve to death and
buy more bees in the spring?" Some beekeepers do that, although it
seems a cruel practice.

"No," he said, "I leave them enough honey.
The important thing though," he said, "is that they get enough
air."

The first winter he kept bees here in
Pagosa, the hives were covered, heaped high, with snow. Charlie
thought, "Well, that's the end of the bees." Came spring, he went out
to brush the snow off the hives and check out the losses. And heard a
faint buzz, buzz, buzz, coming from inside the boxes.

The bees had weathered the winter just
fine.

How do they do it? They gather in a ball,
and the ones on the inside are warm. They keep changing position to
let the bees on the outside come in out of the cold and warm up. This
is why they need honey over the winter. It takes a lot of calories to
keep those little bee bodies shimmying and warming each other
up.

Temperature control is just as important in
the summer. Bees spend a lot time fanning air through the hives. They
take water into the hive and leave little drops all around. The
evaporating water helps maintain the hive temperature at a steady 96
degrees.

That's why the hives you see, maybe driving
to Durango, are usually painted white. The light color reflects
sunlight, so the boxes don't heat up too much.

Beehives are composed of boxes stacked on
top of each other. The bottom two are usually where the bees live and
raise their young. The ones above those, called "supers," are where
the honey is stored. The beekeeper hangs empty forms inside the
supers, forms that have the suggestion of a honeycomb structure. The
bees do the rest, making honeycomb cells out of wax and filling them
with honey.

All the opening slots between the boxes and
between the racks of honey are a standard width, about 5/16 of an
inch, called "bee space." Bee space was discovered by a fellow named
Langstroth, a 19th century Congregational minister.

If the openings are wider or narrower than
bee space, the bees will fill them with a kind of resin they make,
called "propalis." They also cement the boxes together with propalis.
The beekeeper has to pry the supers off with a flat metal
tool.

Beekeeping is not high-tech. A beekeeper
carries his prying tool and his smoke pot, and that's about all, when
he goes to visit the beehives.

"But what about those bears?" I
asked.

And the answer? Of course the bears get at
the hives! What did you expect? Charlie showed me pictures of earlier
years, when the bears had gotten into his beehives. There had been
four hives in a row, and the bear had torn one of them apart. Bee
cement, the propalis, was no match for a hungry bear.

"I had to move the undamaged hives the next
day," Charlie said. "Before the bear came back."

After he had given me the standard show and
tell that he gives visiting 4-H kids and other groups, Charlie asked,
"Do you want to see the bees?"

"Of course," I said. "That's why I'm
here."

"Okay," he said. "Put these on." And he
handed me a white heavy canvas jacket with a zip-on hood. The front
of the hood, which stood well out from my face, was mesh. There were
leather and canvas gloves, too, with long cuffs.

I was all covered up, like a character in a
disaster movie. Charlie, on the other hand, wore a short-sleeved
shirt. No gloves, no hat with the little screen. No cover-up at all.
Briefly, the thought flashed through my mind that maybe this bee
thing was all a giant hoax. But then he set a little cloth on fire in
the smoker, and off we went to the bee yard.

The bee hives are inside a fence. A sturdy
bear-resistant fence, with heavy wood poles and bars at the corners
and lots of wire. An electrified bear-resistant fence, enclosing a
square space about 10 feet on a side, containing four beehives. The
bears come around, leave a little sign, and maybe get their noses
zapped, but they don't get inside the fence.

Charlie turned off the juice, unhooked the
electric wires, and we went in. The bees buzzed around us, but a few
whiffs of the smoker calmed them right down.

With the bees groggy and slow, Charlie pried
off the top super from one of the hives and took out a frame of
honey. Back at his house, he gave me a round section of honeycomb. He
wrote out a label for it, "Produced by Charlie King's bees on the
flanks of Pagosa Peak, Colorado."

"All honey used to come in the comb like
this," he said. "You just scoop out a bit and chew it."

I did. The sweet honey filled my mouth and
flowed down my throat. I chewed the wax. It tasted, well,
waxy.

Editorials

All's well...isn't
it?

Our county commissioners are championing a sales tax initiative in

November almost certain to cause some conflict with the Town of

Pagosa Springs. There are other options but the commissioners seem
unwilling to exercise them.

Hopefully, the situation will turn out for the best, for the
greatest number of people. But, the more adversarial the situation
becomes, the less chance for success.

To prevent outright hostility, the commissioners must be sure of
several things and act accordingly.

Certainly, the commissioners understand the town has a law on the
books, approved by voters more than a year ago, that goes into effect
if the current 2 percent sales tax, split 50/50 over 7 years between
town and county, expires or is altered in any way. This law, allowing
the town to take up to 3 percent sales tax in town along with its
perpetual 1 percent outside town limits, was passed following a
failed attempt by several non-town residents to put an initiative on
a ballot calling for the town's share of countywide sales tax to be
reduced. In taking the issue to voters in 1999, trustees were clear
then about attempts to dictate town business by anyone living outside
town. The commissioners must realize the town is not going to back
down now, and allow voters outside town boundaries to arbitrarily
dictate affairs within its statutory boundaries.

Certainly, the commissioners know, too, the town is a statutory
entity of no less legal status than the county - that there is no
political hierarchy in place, with county government at the top of
the pyramid.

Surely they realize that at least 70-percent of sales tax, and
probably more, is collected within the boundaries of the Town of
Pagosa Springs and that town trustees have an obligation to work in
the fiscal best interests of their constituents to protect as much of
that revenue as possible. They realize that, legally, it doesn't
matter whether sales tax is paid by in-town residents, county
residents, or tourists.

Surely the commissioners realize, if they proceed with their
apparent plan, there will be opposition to the measure. There will be
opponents who urge defeat of the measure and a return to the polls in
November, 2002, with a remodeled issue that reflects increased
communication and cooperation between town and county - entities
that, for the last decade, have enjoyed an unusually positive
relationship. There has been scant communication between town and
county thus far, and there are people in the community who would feel
more comfortable if a ballot issue was supported openly and fully by
both entities.

They know this. Of course they do.

The plan on the commissioners' table relies on the use of the word
"extension." If passed, the issue will "extend" the current 2-percent
tax - not allowing the current tax to expire. Yet, one commissioner,
as late as Tuesday, was pondering the prospect of asking the
"extension" to be "in perpetuity." Another allowed as how he is on
the fence regarding the "in perpetuity" proposal.

Surely, the commissioners understand what the words "altered in
any way" mean.

They know, when combined, the phrases "in perpetuity" and "altered
in any way" buy a token on a bus heading straight to court.

They have thought this thing out in detail, haven't they? They've
crafted a plan suitable to one and all, one that is going to succeed
because of mutual support. They've represented the situation
accurately to numerous legal authorities through their county
attorney, and received positive responses.

Haven't they?

They would never take a poorly conceived gamble - one that, if it
backfires, could destroy relations with the town and face residents
of the county with the specter of reduced sales tax revenues.

Would they?

Karl Isberg

Dear Folks

By David C. Mitchell

It's a great day for an
anniversary

Dear Folks,

Whaddya think?

I don't know. Whadda ya think?

Well right off I think someone is going to question the
misspelling of "What do you think?"

At least some readers will.

Others won't think a thing about it.

For about the past three years Mr. Crouse and I periodically
talked about what would follow the final Weld Spatters.

We knew it wasn't a "when or if" proposition. It was only a matter
of when.

There would be no Weld Spatters II or an attempt to imitate Mr.
Crouse's approach or style.

Some younger native old timers had considered taking up their pens
as "The Next Generation," and sharing their memories of Pagosa
Springs past.

They could have provided a revised version of many of the same
episodes Mr. Crouse shared with his readers. They would have had
their own hunting and fishing stories. Being from a later era, they
would have experienced a somewhat different school and social life.
They probably would have recalled some escapades about the blacksmith
and welding shop that Mr. Crouse had forgotten or failed to mention.

Whereas Mr. Crouse eased into Weld Spatters with an
on-again-off-again approach of periodically submitting a column, his
potential followers knew a weekly column would be expected.

Whereas it's easy to write a column; it's work to write a weekly
column.

One of the first things I learned at the SUN is that there are no
byes, no open spots on the schedule, no vacations . . . the season
lasts 52 weeks and you've got to start fresh every week.

I can't blame the next generation for not wanting to commit to
producing a weekly column.

So I asked Karl what he thought about "Whaddya Think?"

After all, an endless number of legitimate issues, reasonable
concerns and inane ideas surface in Pagosa Springs. There could be
something new every week.

And in Pagosa Springs, you don't have to ask. Most folks give you
their opinion whether you ask for it or not.

So it seemed like a good idea to ask folks what they thought about
a specific issue . . . limiting the answer to a brief response.

Not knowing he was the one I planned to dump the assignment on,
Karl said he thought it could be interesting.

Even after I said he would have to take mug shots along with
asking the questions, Karl was ready to hit the sidewalks.

So don't be surprised if in the future someone comes up to you and
says, "Hey, Whaddya think about. . .?

And no, you don't have to buy a copy of your photo or sign up for
a subscription.

It's just a chance to let folks know what you think about what's
happening in Pagosa springs.

Know you are loved and please keep us in your prayers.

David

Legacies

By Shari Pierce

100 years ago

Taken from The Weekly Times of
August 15, 1901

Monday evening about eight o'clock fire was
reported, it was in the Santa Fe Cafe. The damage was very light as
the flame was very soon extinguished. This would be a very dangerous
place for fire to start since it is the only solid built portion of
town.

J.H. Hallett came down from the mountains
with many fine samples of ore rock, some of which runs very well in
minerals.

Ben Minium is cutting several acres of fall
wheat which is reported to be of the very finest quality and will
yield about 20 bushels per acre.

The little child of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis
swallowed a pin Monday causing considerable alarm to the parents.
Fortunately no harm was done.

75 years ago

Taken from SUN files of August
20, 1926

An offender appeared before Justice Herbert
Loucks last Saturday evening to answer to the charge of leaving a
camp fire burning on the forest reserve. His defense was that he had
no such intent and had considered the fire out when he left. He was
fined the sum of $25 and costs, but the fine was remitted.

The Community Health Conference, held in
Pagosa Springs Monday under the auspices of the local Parent-Teacher
Association and the Women's Civic Club, was successful in every way.
A total of 62 children were examined at the clinic, 36% of which were
found to be more than 7% underweight for their heights. This is close
to the average for the state. The doctor advised tonsil and adenoid
operations in 23 cases, or 37% of the children examined.

50 years ago

Taken from SUN files of August
17, 1951

The town dump grounds on the Trujillo road
has been cleaned up and a road built to the rear of the area. Town
authorities are making signs and have served notice that anyone
dumping in other than authorized places will be subject to arrest and
a heavy fine.

The Woman's Civic Club was entertained by
Mr. and Mrs. Clee Woods at their Double Quill Ranch on the San Juan
River on Aug. 9. Following the business meeting Mr. Woods entertained
the Club with an intensely interesting talk on the making of a movie.
His emphasis was placed on the movie, "The Battle of Apache Pass,"
which was recently filmed at Moab, Utah. Mr. Woods acted as technical
advisor on the Indian customs, costumes, and dances used in this
movie. He also worked with the cavalry used in this picture.

25 years ago

Taken from SUN files of August
12, 1976

The first freeze of the season was reported
the morning of August 8. The weather station thermometer registered
exactly 32 degrees, but this was enough to nip flowers and gardens.
This is one of the earliest freezes in recent years. Since that time
the weather has been pleasant with almost daily evening
showers.

The Archuleta County Fair this year was down
in number of general exhibits, up in attendance, and in livestock
exhibits. The bidding at the livestock auction was more competitive
than for some years and all livestock sold well.

TV movies were in the Chromo area at the
Harold and Ernie Schutz ranches last week filming Marlboro Country
cigarette commercials.